The High-Performance Computing and Quantum Simulator hybrid (HPCQS) project has reached a major milestone with the inauguration of two Pasqal neutral-atom quantum processors—Jade and Ruby—situated at Forschungszentrum Jülich (FZJ) and CEA. This federated EuroHPC initiative marks a step toward making quantum computing a practical component of Europe’s scientific computational landscape. Concurrently, JSC researchers, in collaboration with NVIDIA, set a new record by simulating a 50-qubit universal quantum computer on the JUPITER exascale supercomputer.
The integration of the Pasqal processors, each capable of controlling more than 100 qubits, transforms quantum technology into reliable HPC infrastructure. The QPUs are integrated through standard workload management systems like SLURM, allowing hybrid quantum-classical computations to run using familiar commands. The project developed a specific software stack that includes Eviden Qaptiva and the ParityQC Architecture to ensure seamless interoperability.
The 50-qubit simulation milestone, achieved on JUPITER (Europe’s fastest supercomputer), highlights the exponential challenge of classical simulation. The record was enabled by the close coupling of CPUs and GPUs in NVIDIA GH200 Superchips and an enhanced simulation software, JUQCS-50, which utilizes hybrid memory to efficiently handle the 2 petabytes of memory required. This milestone defines the current high-water mark for classical simulation accuracy, underscoring the need for the physical quantum resources being deployed under HPCQS.
This combined hybrid infrastructure is a cornerstone of Europe’s Quantum Flagship initiative, reinforcing technological sovereignty. By linking quantum processors directly to Europe’s Tier-0 supercomputers, JSC provides a working reality for researchers to develop hybrid algorithms for complex problems such as industrial battery design, drug discovery, and optimization challenges.
Read the full announcement for the HPCQS inauguration here and the quantum simulation record here.
November 18, 2025
