7 November 2024
In the QSolid collaborative project, Forschungszentrum Jülich and its partners have started operating the first prototype of a quantum computer with optimised qubit quality. It forms the basis of a future quantum computer being developed in Germany using superconducting qubits, which will be able to perform complex calculations for industry and research.
After two and a half years of project work, the 160-strong consortium led by project coordinator Prof. Dr Frank Wilhelm-Mauch from Forschungszentrum Jülich has reached an important milestone in the national joint project. "We have developed a compact but powerful system that is now ready to enter the next phase of development," Prof. Frank Wilhelm-Mauch is pleased to say. Over the next few years, the system will be further expanded and integrated into the existing Jülich supercomputing environment in order to increase its performance from the current 10 to 30 qubits. This abbreviation stands for "quantum bits", the central information unit of a quantum computer.
"We are happy that we were able to build up our expertise in the first half of the project and bundle it into an initial system. With the funding secured, we can now scale up to a truly remarkable platform," says Prof. Wilhelm-Mauch.
Part of the German Research Strategy
QSolid is 90 per cent funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). The project, in which 25 institutions from Germany are collaborating, is part of the German strategy to secure technological sovereignty in the field of quantum research. The overarching aim is to strengthen Germany's industrial competitiveness and to enable new applications in science and industry, for example in areas such as chemistry, materials science and medical technology.
A total of 76.3 million euros is being allocated to the project. The funding has now been fully approved by the BMBF due to the convincing performance data of the 10-qubit prototype.
10-Qubit Demonstrator in Operation
The now completed system has a low error rate, a customised software stack and will be connected to the Jülich UNified Infrastructure for Quantum computing (JUNIQ) via cloud access in the coming weeks. The centrepiece of the prototype is the quantum processor, which already delivers high performance. The software stack has also passed initial functional tests and is currently being connected to the quantum processor. In addition, major subsystems for cabling, electronics and software have been developed and installed on the central system. There are also new test capabilities for developing the next generation of cryogenic qubit control, which will make qubit operation easier and more energy efficient in the future.
Further Development for Industrial and Scientific Applications
As the project continues until the end of 2026, the team will develop and optimise several types of processors based on the results now presented. The prototype of the QSolid demonstrator is expected to multiply its performance in the future.
A central goal of the QSolid project is also to integrate quantum computers into the existing supercomputing environment at the Jülich Supercomputing Centre. The combination of quantum computers and supercomputers should make it possible to perform particularly complex calculations faster and more efficiently. "First steps towards a hybrid system that combines quantum and supercomputing have already been taken. Integration into Jülich's high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure is already possible to some extent," explains Prof. Wilhelm-Mauch.
