PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

David DiVincenzo

Also known as David Peter Divincenzo, David P. DiVincenzo

David DiVincenzo is a quantum-information researcher whose work set out practical requirements for quantum computers. He earned a PhD in electrical engineering at the University of Pennsylvania in 1983, completed a Cornell postdoctoral fellowship, and worked at IBM Watson Research Center from 1985 to 2011. With Daniel Loss, he proposed spin-based quantum-dot gates in 1998; his 2000 paper discussed requirements for quantum computation and communication. He received an Alexander von Humboldt Professorship in 2010, became a professor at RWTH Aachen and director of theoretical nanoelectronics at Jülich in 2011, and was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2023. Clarivate named him a Citation Laureate in 2025, and he left Jülich's directorship in July 2025; as of October 2026, he is a professor at TU Delft's EEMCS department and a QuTech staff member.

Works
456
Citations
49,636
h-index
78
Badges

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 19 October 2026.

Timeline

  1. 1983

    A Penn doctorate and Cornell postdoc

    In 1983, he earns a PhD in electrical engineering at the University of Pennsylvania and takes a postdoctoral position at Cornell University.

  2. 1985–2011

    IBM and the move to Germany

    He serves as a Research Staff Member at IBM Watson Research Center from 1985 to 2011. In January 2011, he becomes the first JARA professor at RWTH Aachen's Institute for Quantum Information and director of the Peter Grünberg Institute for Theoretical Nanoelectronics at Forschungszentrum Jülich.

  3. 1998–2000

    Quantum-dot gates and criteria

    In 1998, he and Daniel Loss propose a universal set of one- and two-qubit gates using the spins of coupled single-electron quantum dots. His 2000 paper discusses five requirements for quantum computation and two for quantum communication.

  4. 2010

    An Alexander von Humboldt Professorship

    In 2010, he receives the Alexander von Humboldt Professorship.

  5. 2023

    Elected to the National Academy

    The US National Academy of Sciences elects him as a member in 2023.

  6. 2025

    A Clarivate Citation Laureate

    Clarivate names him a Citation Laureate in 2025 for his quantum-computing research. He shares the physics category with Daniel Loss.

  7. July 2025

    Director at Jülich

    He leads the Institute for Theoretical Nanoelectronics at Forschungszentrum Jülich until July 2025.

  8. As of October 2026

    Professor at TU Delft and QuTech

    As of October 2026, he is a professor in TU Delft's EEMCS department and a QuTech staff member.

Career

  1. Since 2004Delft University of TechnologyProfessor
  2. 2012–2025Helmholtz Association of German Research CentresDirector
  3. 2012–2024Forschungszentrum Jülich
  4. 2011–2026RWTH Aachen UniversityJARA Professor
  5. 2002–2004California Institute of Technology
  6. 1995–1999Cambridge Scientific
  7. 1985–2011IBMResearch Staff Member
  8. 1983–1986Cornell UniversityPostdoctoral fellow

Education

  1. 1983University of PennsylvaniaPhD

From the biography and OpenAlex affiliations (the years of papers that list the organization), so some years are approximate.

Most-cited works

  1. Quantum computation with quantum dots1998 · Physical Review A · 6,828 citations
  2. Mixed-state entanglement and quantum error correction1996 · Physical Review A · 5,273 citationsWith Charles H. Bennett and John A. Smolin
  3. Elementary gates for quantum computation1995 · Physical Review A · 4,303 citationsWith Charles H. Bennett, Harald Weinfurter, John A. Smolin, Peter W. Shor and Richard Cleve
  4. Quantum information and computation2000 · Nature · 3,261 citationsWith Charles H. Bennett
  5. The Physical Implementation of Quantum Computation2000 · Fortschritte der Physik · 2,370 citations

From OpenAlex, as of 19 October 2026.

  1. More people shaping AI studied at Massachusetts Institute of Technology than at any other institutionIncludes RWTH Aachen University. Our estimates of where the people shaping AI studied and where their careers led, from education records in cited biographies.
  2. The company share of AI researchers’ top papers rose from 2% to 32%Includes Delft University of Technology. We estimate where leading AI researchers worked when their most-cited papers appeared. The company share rose from 2% in 1975–1979 to 32% in 2020–2024.
  3. Google has the highest combined h-index among AI organizationsIncludes RWTH Aachen University. Our estimates of combined and median h-index at AI organizations, using current affiliations and OpenAlex records.
  4. Stanford University trained or employed 20 of the 89 AI major-prize winners, more than any other universityIncludes Delft University of Technology. Stanford University trained or employed 20 of the 89 AI major-prize winners, more than any other university. We compare doctorate and employment links for major-prize and best-paper winners.

Colleagues

People with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

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  1. David DiVincenzo humboldt-foundation.de. Checked 19 October 2026.
  2. David DiVincenzo fz-juelich.de. Checked 19 October 2026.
  3. Quantum computation with quantum dots journals.aps.org. Checked 19 October 2026.
  4. The Physical Implementation of Quantum Computation arxiv.org. Checked 19 October 2026.
  5. David DiVincenzo zum Mitglied der US National Academy of Sciences gewählt fz-juelich.de. Checked 19 October 2026.
  6. Excellent science: David DiVincenzo named 2025 Clarivate Citation Laureate fz-juelich.de. Checked 19 October 2026.
  7. David DiVincenzo - QuTech qutech.nl. Checked 19 October 2026.