The CAS Center for Excellence Quantum Information and Quantum Physics was founded in Hefei, Anhui province, on Wednesday.

The center, based in the University of Science and Technology of China and under the leadership of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, will be built into a top-notch academic institution with an international influence in quantum information and quantum physics, Bai Chunli, president of CAS, said at the founding ceremony.

Earlier this year, the CAS launched a program establishing five top innovation centers in China in wake of President Xi Jinping's call to deepen reform and innovation in science and technology to enhance the nation's strength.

The CAS aims to build the Hefei-based center into a model for the other four centers, specializing in the earth system science of Qinghai-Tibet plateau, particle physics, brain science and thorium molten salt reactors, according to the CAS president.