Quantum physicists Charles Bennett and Gilles Brassard win $1m Turing Award

Duo bag award often described as the “Nobel Prize in Computing” The post Quantum physicists Charles Bennett and Gilles Brassard win $1m Turing Award appeared first on Physics World .

6 April 2026 at 07:35 pm

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Quantum physicists Charles Bennett and Gilles Brassard win $1m Turing Award

Quantum physicists Charles Bennett and Gilles Brassard have been honored with the 2025 ACM Turing Award, often dubbed the “Nobel Prize in Computing.” The prestigious award, which carries a $1 million prize, recognizes their pivotal contributions to establishing the foundations of quantum information science and revolutionizing secure communication and computing.

The Turing Award, named after Alan Turing, the British mathematician who laid the mathematical groundwork for computing, is presented by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). Bennett and Brassard have been instrumental in shaping quantum information science for over four decades, with their most notable achievement being the development of a quantum cryptography protocol in the 1980s.

Classical cryptography is a cornerstone of modern computer and communication networks, safeguarding everything from business emails to bank transactions. It relies on encryption algorithms and a secret “key” that the sender uses to scramble a message into an unreadable form for eavesdroppers. The recipient then deciphers the message using the same key. However, the challenge lies in securely distributing the key between the two parties.

Quantum cryptography, or quantum key distribution (QKD), offers a groundbreaking solution to this problem. By leveraging the principles of quantum mechanics, QKD provides an automated method for distributing secret keys through standard communication fibers. This approach is inherently secure, as any attempt by a third party to intercept the key would disturb its quantum state, alerting the communicating parties to the intrusion. Additionally, QKD allows for frequent key changes, significantly reducing the risk of key theft.

In 1984, Bennett, then at IBM Research, and Brassard, at the University of Montreal, proposed the first method for distributing secret keys encoded in quantum states. Their “BB84” protocol revolutionized secure communication by representing a bit of information through the polarization state of a single photon. For instance, a “0” could be represented by a horizontally polarized photon, while a “1” would be represented by a vertically polarized photon. The sender transmits a string of polarized single photons to the receiver, who then measures the polarization of each photon.

The BB84 protocol introduced a new era of secure communication, laying the groundwork for future advancements in quantum cryptography. Bennett and Brassard's work has not only transformed the field of quantum information science but has also paved the way for the development of quantum computers and quantum networks.

The Turing Award recognizes Bennett and Brassard's enduring impact on the field of computing and their pioneering efforts in quantum cryptography. Their achievements underscore the importance of foundational research in shaping the future of technology and ensuring the security of global communication systems. As quantum technologies continue to evolve, the legacy of Bennett and Brassard will undoubtedly inspire future generations of scientists and engineers to explore the boundaries of what is possible in the quantum realm.

Source: Physics World

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