Quantum‑computing pioneers IonQ, Element Six and Amazon Web Services announced a breakthrough that could turn the laboratory‑grade diamond film into a mass‑produced component of tomorrow’s data‑centre. The trio’s new process produces high‑yield, quantum‑grade diamond thin films that can be bonded onto conventional silicon substrates, making the exotic material compatible with the world’s semiconductor foundries. This development, presented at IonQ’s Quantum World Congress 2025, promises to unlock scalable, high‑performance quantum interconnects and memory devices that have so far been limited to bespoke, low‑volume fabrication.
How IonQ and Element Six Scaled Diamond Thin Films
The key to the new technique lies in a precise layering sequence that begins with a high‑purity diamond seed grown on a silicon wafer. Using chemical vapour deposition, the team grows a diamond film only a few hundred micrometres thick, then detaches it from the seed crystal and bonds it onto a fresh silicon carrier. The result is a stack that combines diamond’s exceptional electronic properties, long spin coherence times and a host of colour‑centre defects, with silicon’s mature, low‑cost processing infrastructure.
The films are not only thin but also uniform and defect‑free. A typical batch contains a 3 × 3 array of diamond squares, each roughly 0.5 × 0.5 mm², spaced 5 mm apart. The process yields over 90 % of the films meeting the stringent purity and crystallographic standards required for quantum devices. Because the bonding step uses standard wafer‑level techniques, the films can be handled by existing clean‑room equipment, eliminating the need for specialised diamond reactors.
The collaboration also leverages Amazon Web Services’ cloud‑based simulation tools to optimise deposition parameters and predict defect densities before each run. By integrating software modelling with experimental feedback, the team can iterate rapidly, reducing the time from concept to production‑ready wafer from months to weeks.
70 Years of Synthetic Diamond Research Pay Off
Element Six’s involvement traces back to the early days of synthetic diamond research in the 1950s. As a subsidiary of the De Beers Group, the company has long exploited diamond’s unrivalled hardness and thermal conductivity. Over seven decades, its scientists have pioneered applications ranging from cutting tools for the oil and gas sector to high‑frequency sensors for aerospace.
The present breakthrough builds on that legacy. By combining diamond’s optical transparency and wide bandgap with silicon’s silicon‑nitride interconnects, the team has created a platform that supports both quantum memories and photonic circuitry. This dual capability is critical for IonQ’s vision of modular quantum processors, where each processing unit (QPU) is linked via high‑speed photonic interconnects that preserve entanglement over long distances.
Moreover, the ability to mass‑produce diamond films means that diamond‑based quantum sensors, such as nitrogen‑vacancy (NV) centres used for magnetometry, can now be integrated into commercial sensor arrays. In GPS‑denied environments, these sensors could provide precise inertial navigation, a capability that has attracted interest from defence and space agencies.
Why Modular Quantum Architectures Need Diamond Interconnects
IonQ’s long‑term strategy is to assemble data‑centre‑scale quantum machines from a network of smaller, specialised QPUs. This modular approach mirrors the evolution of classical supercomputing, where thousands of CPUs are connected through high‑bandwidth interconnects. For quantum systems, however, the interconnect must preserve fragile quantum states while delivering low latency.
Diamond thin films provide the perfect medium for such interconnects. Silicon vacancy (SiV) defects in diamond act as quantum memories that can be optically addressed and read out with high fidelity. When integrated onto a silicon photonic chip, these memories can store and retrieve photons that carry entanglement between QPUs. The result is a scalable network that can route quantum information with minimal loss.
The modular architecture also benefits from the foundry‑compatible fabrication process. By using standard semiconductor fabs, IonQ can replicate its designs at scale, avoiding the bottleneck of custom, low‑throughput diamond processing. This scalability is essential for moving beyond proof‑of‑concept prototypes to the hundreds or thousands of QPUs required for practical quantum advantage.
In addition, the same platform can host classical control electronics on the silicon carrier, allowing tight integration of quantum and classical subsystems. This co‑location reduces signal latency and power consumption, both of which are critical for large‑scale quantum operations.
From Oil Drilling to Quantum Computing: Diamond’s New Role
Diamond’s journey from industrial drilling tools to the heart of quantum technology illustrates the material’s versatility. In the 1970s, diamond‑coated drill bits revolutionised the oil and gas industry by extending tool life and reducing maintenance costs. Today, the same material is being used to build the most coherent quantum memories, the most precise sensors, and the fastest photonic interconnects.
The commercial implications are vast. Automotive manufacturers can incorporate diamond‑based heat spreaders into electric‑vehicle batteries, improving thermal management. Consumer electronics could benefit from diamond‑enhanced microphones that deliver clearer audio in noisy environments. In mining and construction, diamond‑coated drills will become even more efficient as the manufacturing process matures.
Perhaps most striking is the potential for quantum‑enabled networks. By embedding diamond quantum memories into data‑centre backbones, service providers could offer unbreakable encryption and ultra‑low‑latency communication for critical applications such as financial trading, cloud computing, and autonomous vehicle coordination.
The breakthrough also dovetails with IonQ’s recent acquisitions. The purchase of Vector Atomic, a company specialising in atomic‑scale sensors, and the integration of Oxford Ionics, a leader in semiconductor‑grade ionics, position IonQ as a full‑stack quantum platform. Together, these assets cover compute, networking, and sensing, creating a compelling value proposition for investors and customers alike.
The ability to produce high‑yield, foundry‑compatible diamond thin films marks a turning point in the use of diamond as an industrial semiconductor. By bridging the gap between exotic quantum materials and mass‑produced silicon technology, IonQ, Element Six and Amazon Web Services have opened a pathway to scalable, high‑performance quantum systems. As the semiconductor industry pours more than a trillion dollars into new fabs, the quantum community stands ready to harness that infrastructure, turning the once‑laboratory‑only diamond into a cornerstone of the next computing revolution.
