The ACM Symposium on Applied Computing (SAC) serves as a premier international platform for professionals in the fields of applied computing, computer engineering, software engineering, and application development to convene and exchange ideas. The forthcoming SAC 2026 event is sponsored by the ACM Special Interest Group on Applied Computing (SIGAPP), and it is scheduled to take place in Thessaloniki, Greece, on March 23-27, 2026. ce
Special Track on Quantum Software Engineering Practices (QSEP) :
This track aims to provide a venue to discuss novel Quantum-specific software engineering tools, processes, techniques, frameworks, models, and best practices. This track will bring together researchers and practitioners from academia and industry to present research work to ensure the quality of quantum software engineering lifecycle activities and improve overall productivity.
Scope:
As the era of quantum computing dawns, industry leaders such as IBM, Google, and Microsoft are pioneering the field. However, a significant challenge remains: transforming exciting quantum possibilities into practical, real-world application. This is where Quantum Software Engineering (QSE) becomes essential that is central to our track titled- Quantum Software Engineering Practices (QSEP).
This track is dedicated to steering the evolution of QSE. It serves as a platform to illuminate the most recent developments in the field and to facilitate an interdisciplinary exchange of ideas. Participants will range from academic scholars to industry experts from globally recognized technology firms.
The track objectives are twofold: firstly, to present and disseminate novel methods, tools, and research findings in the domain of QSE; secondly, to confront and devise solutions for the intricate challenges inherent in the development of quantum software. This event is a cornerstone in charting the trajectory for future software development endeavors, marking a critical phase in the technological landscape.
Suggested Topics:
Topics of interest for the track cover the entire cycle of quantum software engineering, which includes (but is not limited to) the following themes:
• State-of-the-art and state-of-the-practice in quantum software development
• Hybrid (quantum+classical) software engineering
• Quantum software programming
• Scaling from classical to quantum software engineering
• Literature reviews on quantum software engineering
• Case studies, surveys, observational studies, Delphi studies, and field studies on quantum software engineering
• Evaluation and quality aspect of a software process for quantum computing systems
• Best practices and lessons learned in the quantum software development process
• Software design and architecture
• Validation and simulation
• Industrial findings and experience reports of developing quantum software
• Prototypes and tool support for quantum software engineering activities
• Ethics in quantum software engineering process and design
• Quantum software engineering education
Track Chairs
M3S Empirical Software Engineering Research Unit,
University of Oulu, Finland,
Email: arif.khan@oulu.fi
Muhammad Azeem Akbar,
Software Engineering Department,
Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology, Lappeenranta, Finland,
Email: azeem.akbar@lut.fi
Shahid Hussain,
Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering, School of Engineering,
Penn State University Behrend, Erie, PA, USA
Email: shussain@psu.edu