- The University
- 06/05/2025
Quantum mechanics intimidating? Not if you make it your own
Quantum mechanics can come across as elusive, abstract, and even intimidating. But if you come into contact with it more often – and preferably at a young age – it turns out not to be so scary at all. That is, according to Quantum Talent and Learning Center Eindhoven (QTLC-E).
Learning about quantum mechanics with a game of noughts and crosses: you can do it with Tiq Taq Toe. This game will actually allow you to put a cross or a nought in two places at once, and intertwine them, just like particles in quantum mechanics. To play the game, you don’t need to know or understand basic concepts such as superposition and quantum entanglement, but by playing the game, you will get an intuitive sense of how they work.
This is indicative of what QTLC-E, which is involved in organizing a tournament of the game, wants to achieve, explains program manager Mohammad-Amin Moradi. The center, a collaboration between TU/e and Fontys, has existed for a year and a half now and is part of Quantum Delta NL, a national project to strengthen the Dutch quantum ecosystem. QTLC-E contributes to this mission in a number of ways, including by making quantum concepts more accessible. “For one thing, we let people have fun with it,” as with the Tiq Taq Toe tournament, says Moradi.
Intuition
By coming into contact with quantum phenomena, you can develop an intuition for them. This can be done through games, but also through experiences in the lab, says Ruben Ouderkerk. He’s doing a pre-master’s leading up to the Master’s Program of Applied Physics and co-founded QUBION, one of QTLC-E’s recently launched initiatives, which develops educational setups that allow students to gain more experience running experiments.
The principle of gravity is incredibly complex, but everyone understands what it is. We want to achieve the same for quantum mechanics.
“You experience classical physics every day as a human being. You don’t know the physics principles behind it, but you know how hard you have to throw a ball to get it to a certain place,” Ouderkerk explains. People don’t get those experiences with quantum phenomena. “If you did get them, then you could look at quantum mechanics the way you look at gravity. The principle of gravity is incredibly complex, but everyone understands what it is. We want to achieve the same for quantum mechanics.”
The first project with which QUBION plans to help achieve this revolves around a quantum setup that TU/e already has in place in Qubit. The team is copying that setup step by step, adding educational elements. “We mainly go about this by clearly marking the buttons. If you look at that incredibly complex setup as a student, it can come across as very intimidating. By clearly indicating which dials to turn and showing what happens next, you remove that obstacle.”
Smooth transition
QUBION’s work not only helps Applied Physics students get a better feel for quantum mechanics, but also helps smooth the transition to a research group or industry. According to Ouderkerk, many students have more theoretical knowledge than experimental knowledge. “When students then join a research group after graduation, they have to build that experimental knowledge from scratch.” By teaching them those skills at an earlier stage, it takes less time and effort to familiarize students with lab setups (which are actually pretty standard in quantum mechanics).
Not only TU/e students need to become more familiar with quantum concepts, but the same goes for Fontys and Summa students, Moradi says. According to him, each education level has its own place within the quantum ecosystem. For example, students from secondary vocational education are needed to install setups. QTLC-E wants to bring all of the different levels of education closer together in order to better align different roles. “It’s necessary for them to be able to work together in a quantum environment.”
Exchange
The center is also connecting with industry, partly to show new startups what quantum topics are current and what’s going on in the market, but also to find out what skills students will need when they start working at a company after graduating. “We ask companies to work with us to create an educational setup where students can be trained. We also develop short certification training programs to help students get onboarded faster and easier.” The center continuously exchanges information with companies to find out what skills students need to function well within the quantum ecosystem.
In other words, a lot of cross-pollination is taking place. It was industry, for example, that gave QTLC-E the idea of using games to introduce young people to quantum mechanics. ASML, to be exact, says Moradi. “We saw that they had a game room there, and that there were more high-tech companies that would enjoy having something like that.” In response, the center founded team EduQuation in August 2023, led by Fontys students for the time being. The team brought together existing quantum games for a game room concept.
Playful
With the game room, the students go to companies and events, but especially to high schools, so students can play with quantum mechanics for an hour, says chair Basten van der Vorm. He knows from his own experience that games are a good gateway into the quantum domain. “I was never able to do quantum programming, but we found games that make that programming clear in a visual interactive way. Now I can do it.” Both he and fellow board member Imke Houben say they’ve ‘tricked’ themselves with games and learned to look at quantum mechanics in a different way.
Playful learning about quantum mechanics can be done even before high school, says Houben. “At the first event we were at, there were also very young children present. These were children from the Eindhoven Hendrik Casimir Institute (EHCI), so they must have been somewhat familiar with the principles of quantum mechanics. Anyway, after half an hour they were already helping each other, like: ‘No, you have to shine light on the electron, so it will get more energy.’ That made me think: wow, this is working.”
As long as the primary purpose of a quantum game is having fun, then quantum mechanics has a chance to creep in, says Van der Vorm. Quantum chess, for example, appeals to many people, he’s noticed. And there are more games, such as Psi & Delta, Quantum Flytrap and, of course, Tiq Taq Toe. Participation in the tournament of the latter game is still possible until May 12, but even after that, Tiq Taq Toe will remain available to play online, just for fun or to convince yourself that quantum mechanics really isn’t all that intimidating.
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