2025 Nobel Prize in Physics awarded for macroscale quantum tunneling

A device consisting of four transmon qubits, four quantum buses, and four readout resonators fabricated by IBM in 2017. Credit: ay M. Gambetta, Jerry M. Chow & Matthias Steffen/CC BY 4.0

The 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded to John Clarke, Michel H. Devoret, and John M. Martinis "for the discovery of macroscopic quantum tunneling and energy quantization in an electrical circuit." The Nobel committee said during a media briefing that the laureates' work provides opportunities to develop "the next generation of quantum technology, including quantum cryptography, quantum computers, and quantum sensors." The three men will split the $1.1 million (11 million Swedish kroner) prize money. The presentation ceremony will take place in Stockholm on December 10, 2025.

"To put it mildly, it was the surprise of my life," Clarke told reporters by phone during this morning's press conference. "Our discovery in some ways ...