2025: Year Of Quantum Science

This year marks the centenary of the development of quantum mechanics, which explains the behaviour of matter and energy at atomic and subatomic levels

- SHOVANLAL CHAKRABORTY

The United Nations (UN) has declared 2025 as the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology (IYQ 2025). This declaration followed a draft resolution moved by Ghana, co-sponsored by six other countries, and supported by more than 70 nations.

This year marks the centenary of the development of quantum mechanics, which explains the behaviour of matter and energy at atomic and subatomic levels. Quantum science and technology have enabled innovations like MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), lasers, solar cells and computer chips, fundamentally transforming physics and technology.

The UN aims to acknowledge these contributions, raise awareness about their role in sustainable development and ensure equal access to quantum science education and its benefits. Numerous global events and initiatives are being planned at the regional, national and international levels throughout 2025.

The development of quantum science made extraordinary scientific advances possible, upturning centuries-old notions about nature. It revealed that particles can be treated as point-like or wave-like, depending on observation, and their behaviour is inherently probabilistic. Quantum mechanics, which began as a purely theoretical field a century ago, is now a central theory governing our universe.

It explains virtually everything, from the behaviour of subatomic particles to the distribution of galaxies. For example, it elucidates how the sun shines and how solar panels capture its energy on Earth. Understanding the universe's building blocks enables us to uncover underground structures, map the sea floor and detect bodily changes beyond existing medical scanners.