Draft program. Dates and details may still change.
Melbourne Quantum

Melbourne Quantum Summit 2027

Quantum Information Science

22–23 February 2027

RMIT University · Storey Hall (Building 16), Level 7

Register

MQS 2027 is the second Melbourne Quantum Summit, after MQS 2024. Quantum researchers from across Melbourne will meet for two days of talks, posters and discussion. Registration is free. Places are limited to about 80.

For Early-Career Researchers

We want the summit to be a place where early-career researchers can share their work, develop their knowledge and plan for their futures. PhD students, postdocs and other early-career researchers will be prioritised for contributed talks or posters, and first-time presenters have the option to send us their slides or poster beforehand for feedback. In the Melbourne Quantum Landscape session, senior researchers will talk about where quantum research in Melbourne is heading and what building a physics career here involves.

Making Time to Collaborate

Collaborations need dedicated time and deliberate effort, so we've built both into the program. On the first day, there will be a structured discussion session where you'll get to sit in small groups with researchers from other institutions and look for methods that might carry over from one field to another, shared problems and common areas of interest. On the second day, a panel will take up the questions you send in when you register, and a closing discussion will turn the best ideas into plans for keeping Melbourne's quantum community working together after the summit.

Research Areas

The overall theme is quantum information science. The topics below are examples, not a complete list.

  • Quantum communication protocols and networking
  • Relativistic quantum information
  • Mathematical quantum physics
  • Quantum information in gravity and spacetime
  • Quantum optics and continuous-variable quantum computing
  • Distributed and modular quantum computing
  • Quantum many-body physics and entanglement
  • Quantum thermodynamics and resource theories
  • Quantum sensing, metrology and control
  • Quantum computing and algorithms
  • Quantum theory foundations
  • Quantum simulation and validation

Key Dates

Registration and abstract submission open
Monday 16 November 2026
Abstract submission closes
Tuesday 15 December 2026
Talk and poster decisions sent
By Friday 15 January 2027
Last day to send slides or posters for feedback
Friday 5 February 2027
Registration closes
Friday 5 February 2027
Summit
22–23 February 2027 (provisional)

Preliminary Two-Day Program

The program will be organised into themed sessions once the majority of abstract submissions have been received.

Time Day 1 – Monday 22 February 2027 Day 2 – Tuesday 23 February 2027
09:00–09:30 Registration, coffee and welcome remarks Arrival coffee and announcements
09:30–10:15 Keynote 140 min + 5 min questions Keynote 340 min + 5 min questions
10:15–11:00 Themed Block 13 contributed talks Themed Block 43 contributed talks
11:00–11:30 Coffee break Coffee break
11:30–12:15 Themed Block 23 contributed talks Themed Block 53 contributed talks
12:15–13:45 Lunch Lunch
13:45–14:30 Themed Block 33 contributed talks Themed Block 63 contributed talks
14:30–15:15 Keynote 240 min + 5 min questions Keynote 440 min + 5 min questions
15:15–15:45 Coffee break Coffee break
15:45–16:30 Structured cross-institution discussion and collaboration session Melbourne Quantum Landscape / Research Themes / New Initiatives
16:30–17:30 Poster Session90 minutes Panel Discussion60 minutes
17:30–18:00 Open feedback, community next steps and closing discussion
Evening Optional informal dinner / social gathering
Keynote Contributed talks Breaks and meals Community session Posters

Complimentary refreshments and lunch will be provided on both days.

Community Sessions

Cross-Institution Collaboration Session

Researchers will sit at mixed tables with people from other universities and research areas. Each table gets a few short tailored questions to start the conversation, with the goal of ending the session with developed plans for collaboration.

Melbourne Quantum Landscape

Senior researchers from several Melbourne institutions will give an overview of quantum research in the city, covering the major trends, recent events and what an academic career in Melbourne involves.

Panel and Community Next Steps

A panel built from questions sent in through the questionnaire in the registration form, followed by a closing discussion. The aim is to leave with one or two new projects, such as a regular cross-institution seminar series, and volunteers to run them.

For Presenters

The summit has 4 keynote lectures by invited speakers, about 18 short contributed talks and a poster session.

Keynote Lectures

4

Four invited keynote speakers will each present a broad 40-minute lecture followed by 5 minutes of questions.

Speakers to be announced.

Contributed Talks

≈18

There will be six themed blocks of three talks. Each talk is 12 minutes, plus 3 minutes for questions.

Mainly for later-stage PhD students, postdocs and other early-career researchers.

Posters

90 min

A dedicated poster session will provide a relaxed setting for discussing research and meeting colleagues from other institutions.

Particularly encouraged for first- and second-year PhD and Master's students.

Guidelines

Please follow these when preparing your slides or poster.

Talks

  • Format: contributed talks are 12 minutes plus 3 minutes of questions.
  • File format: slides in 16:9 widescreen, saved as a PDF.
  • Text size: about 24 point is usually good, with roughly 10 words across a line and no more than 10 lines per slide.
    Using Beamer, Google Slides or Keynote?

    These sizes assume PowerPoint's standard widescreen slide. Other programs use different slide sizes, so the same point size can look very different. To match 24 point in PowerPoint, use about 18 point in Google Slides or 48 point in Keynote. In Beamer with 16:9 slides (the aspectratio=169 option), the default 11 point text already matches. In Beamer, avoid \scriptsize and \tiny for anything the audience needs to read. The size checker below works with any PDF.

  • Text in charts: text inside your charts should also be about 24 point once the chart is shrunk to fit the slide. Charts pasted in from other software often end up with unreadable axis labels.
  • Colours: use dark text on a light background. Don't rely on red versus green to tell things apart; use symbols or line styles as well.

Posters

  • Format: A0 portrait, 841 mm wide × 1,189 mm tall.
  • Design at full size: set your file to A0 from the start. If you design at A4 and enlarge it to print, photos and other images can come out blurry. The point sizes on this page also assume an A0 file.
  • Margins: keep at least 2 cm clear on every side, with no text or logos. The pins take up the edges of the poster.
  • Text size: never use text smaller than 24 point. Put your main points near the top, at eye level.
  • Figures: details on graphs and photos should be readable from about 2 metres away, including axis labels and numbers.
  • Word count: aim for 1,000 words or fewer, including captions.
  • Column width: keep text columns about 45–⁠65 characters wide (about 8–⁠11 words).
  • Colours: use dark text on a white background. Avoid red and green together, and use symbols or line styles, not just colour, to tell data apart.
  • File for printing: export a PDF with embedded fonts. Images should be 300 dpi at the final print size.
  • Printing: please arrange printing yourself and bring your poster on the day. Many universities have a print service that can print A0, so check with yours first. Officeworks also prints A0 posters, on gloss or matte paper. Allow a few working days.
  • On the day: poster boards and pins are provided.

Advice for First-Time Presenters

Talks

  • Practise in front of an audience if at all possible.
  • Plan for about one slide per minute. A slide that builds up in steps counts as one. Short signposting slides, such as a section title or a one-line outline, don't count, and they help the audience keep track of where you are.
  • Put very little on each slide. If a diagram or derivation is too intricate to show large and uncluttered, it's too intricate for a talk.
  • Arrive at the lecture room early and check that your slides display correctly.
  • Repeat each question aloud before answering it, so the whole room hears it.
  • Leave your conclusions slide up during questions.
  • Pitch the opening so a physicist from a different field can follow it.

Posters

  • Have a speech prepared, and be ready not to give it. Some people will want you to guide them through your research, while others will lead the conversation with questions.
  • Design the poster so it makes sense when you're not standing next to it. Part of the joy of a poster session is seeing other people's work. If you need to be pinned to the side of your poster at all times to make it understandable, you'll miss out.
  • Make it easy for people to contact you afterwards: put an email address on the poster, and bring A4 copies of the poster to hand out.
  • Add a small photo of yourself so people can find you when you're away from the poster.
  • Keep the title short and understandable to a broad audience. It's often the only thing people see before deciding whether to stop.

Check Your Slides or Poster

See your slides as they will look from a seat in the room, or your poster from a few metres away. Your file is opened in your browser and never leaves your computer.

1. Match the Box to a Bank Card

Hold a bank card, Myki card or driver's licence against your screen (they're all the same size), and adjust the box until it is exactly as wide as the card. A ruler works too: the box should be 85.6 mm wide. This lets the page show things at their real size on your screen.

On a phone? Turn it sideways, or use a computer. Held upright, most phones are narrower than a bank card.

2. How Far Are Your Eyes from Your Screen?

Sit as you normally would. Arm's length is about 60 cm.

3. Choose Your PDF

Get Feedback Before the Summit

If this is your first time presenting, you can send us your slides or poster for feedback before the summit. The organising committee will look through your slides or poster and email you feedback within a week.

Only members of the organising committee will see your file. We'll delete uploaded files, and any copies we make, after the summit. If you send a link, you can remove our access after the summit. If your work is unpublished, check your group's policy on sharing it before you send it.

Send your file by: Friday 5 February 2027.

Fields marked are required.

We will send your feedback to this address.

What are you sending?
Your slides or poster

Use this if your file is larger than 20 MB. Share it from Google Drive, OneDrive or Dropbox, and check that the link lets us open the file.

For example, whether the text is large enough, or whether the main message is clear.

AI Policy

Strongly discouraged
Using AI to write text for you, including your abstract, slides or poster. You write every word yourself. AI can point out problems and suggest improvements, but you make the changes by hand. Don't paste in text that an AI has written or rewritten.
Acceptable
Using AI tools to format tables, generate LaTeX layouts, create decorative artwork, and write code for plots and figures. Help with phrasing when writing in a second language is also fine.
Encouraged
Using AI tools to critique your talk, slides or poster, and to check spelling and grammar. Before uploading unpublished work to an AI tool, check your group's policy on sharing it.
Your responsibility
You are responsible for the accuracy of everything you present, however it was made.

Registration and Abstract Submission

A single form accommodates registration, talk or poster abstract submissions, and a brief pre-meeting questionnaire. Completion requires approximately 10 minutes, provided your abstract is finalised.

Registration is complimentary, with attendance strictly limited to approximately 80 participants. In the event that registration exceeds capacity, priority will be given to individuals presenting talks or posters. Remaining seats will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. All accepted participants will receive official confirmation via email.

Abstract submission closes: Tuesday 15 December 2026.
Registration closes: Friday 5 February 2027.

Fields marked are required.

1. About You

Use your institutional email if you have one.

2. Taking Part
How would you like to take part?

Talks are mainly for later-stage PhD students, postdocs and other early-career researchers. Posters are especially encouraged for first- and second-year PhD and Master's students. If there are more talk requests than places, we may offer you a poster instead.

3. Attendance
Which days will you attend?
Are you likely to come to the informal dinner on the evening of Tuesday 23 February? (optional)

For example vegetarian, halal or an allergy we should know about. We'll pass this on to the caterers.

For example, step-free access, or a seat near the front.

4. Pre-Meeting Questionnaire

Your answers help shape the panel discussion and the community sessions. Before we share them with the panel, we'll remove names and contact details. We may also publish a summary of the five rating questions on this website. The rating questions are required, and the written questions are optional.

I can see a realistic path to a long-term physics career in Australia.
I usually follow up with at least one new contact after a conference.
Quantum technology gets more attention and/or funding than it deserves compared with the rest of physics.
I know what research is being done in quantum groups at other Melbourne institutions.
In the past 12 months, how many researchers at other Melbourne institutions have you had a research conversation with?

If you tick this, we’ll keep your email address after the summit so we can contact you about helping with future events.

5. Consent

Your answers are stored in a Google Sheet that only the organising committee can open. Before we share questionnaire answers with the panel, we remove names and contact details. We may publish a summary of the five rating questions on this website. We delete names, email addresses and dietary and accessibility details three months after the summit, except for people who asked to join the mailing list or help organise future events.

Photos may be taken at the summit and used to promote it. Are you happy to appear in them?

Venue

RMIT University, Building 16 (Storey Hall), Level 7, Rooms 1–4.
336–348 Swanston Street, Melbourne VIC 3000.

Getting There

Building 16 is on Swanston Street, near the corner of La Trobe Street, opposite the State Library.

Tram: routes along Swanston Street stop right outside.

Train: State Library station (Metro Tunnel) has an entrance at the corner of Swanston and La Trobe streets, a short walk away. Melbourne Central is also close.

Parking: there is no on-campus visitor parking. Public transport is recommended.

Maps

RMIT's Building 16 page
City campus map, with accessible entrances (PDF)

Directions to Level 7, and details of lift and step-free access, to be added.

Committees

The organising and advisory committees represent a cross-section of Melbourne institutions and research areas in quantum information science.

Organising Committee

  • Francesco CampaioliRMIT University
  • Anwesha ChakrabortyUniversity of Melbourne
  • Ned GoodmanSwinburne University of Technology
  • Michael JonesUniversity of Melbourne
  • Akib KarimCSIRO
  • Amena KhatunCSIRO

Advisory Committee

  • Peter DrummondSwinburne University of Technology
  • Lucas HacklUniversity of Melbourne
  • Lloyd HollenbergIBM Quantum Hub, University of Melbourne
  • Seng LokeDeakin University
  • Nicolas MenicucciRMIT University
  • James QuachCSIRO
  • Stephan RachelUniversity of Melbourne
  • Margaret ReidSwinburne University of Technology
  • Muhammad UsmanMonash University

Sponsors and Supporters

Sponsors

  • Melbourne Initiative for Quantum Technology, University of Melbourne
  • RMIT Applied Quantum Technologies
  • Centre for Quantum Science and Technology Theory, Swinburne University of Technology

Supporters

  • RMIT University
  • University of Melbourne
  • Swinburne University of Technology
  • Monash University
  • CSIRO

Contact

For questions about the summit, email melbournequantum2027@gmail.com.