The Centre for Quantum Information and Quantum Control (CQIQC) at the University of Toronto, Canada is reaching out to the leading quantum research centres and associations worldwide to announce the opening of nominations for the 2026 John Stewart Bell Prize. Previous winners include: John Preskill (Richard P. Feynman Professor of Theoretical Physics, California Institute of Technology); John Martinis (professor of physics, UC Santa Barbara, USA); Ignacio Cirac (Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics), Peter Zoller (University of Innsbruck), Ronald Hanson (TU Delft), Sae Woo Nam (NIST), and Anton Zeilinger (University of Vienna).

We are pleased to announce the opening of nominations for the 2026 John Stewart Bell Prize for Research on Fundamental Issues in Quantum Mechanics and their Applications. This prestigious award recognises significant contributions in the field of quantum mechanics, particularly those published in the six years preceding the award year.

About the Bell Prize

The Bell Prize honours advances in quantum mechanics, including (but not limited to) quantum information theory, computation, foundations, cryptography, and control. It covers theoretical and experimental work. Funded by the University of Toronto’s Centre for Quantum Information and Quantum Control (CQIQC), the award will be presented at the biennial CQIQC conference in August 2026, where the awardee will deliver a prize lecture.

Nomination Process

Nominations must include the nominee’s name, affiliation, a statement of their contribution’s importance, and relevant literature citations (published or in press between August 2019 and August 2025). Deadline August 30, 2025. For more information, you can read the complete Call for Nominations.

*Please note that self-nominations are not permitted.