A team led by the University of Michigan is working to bring quantum technology into the real world with a project called Quantum Photonic Integration and Deployment, or QuPID. The team, which includes principal investigator Mackillo Kira and co-principal investigators Zetian Mi and Parag Deotare, aims to build chips that harness the precision of light for high-accuracy measurements in fields such as environmental monitoring, navigation, and semiconductor quality control.
With a one million dollar grant from the National Science Foundation, the team is exploring options for developing quantum systems that can perform these measurements. The project involves collaborations with leading industrial partners including Honeywell, Intel, and NASA, as well as researchers from universities such as Harvard and Stanford. The team’s goal is to create devices that can be used in a variety of applications, from predicting major storms to measuring the purity of liquids, and to make quantum technology more accessible to industries and researchers around the world.
Introduction to Quantum Photonic Integration and Deployment
The University of Michigan is leading a team that aims to bring the extraordinary accuracy of quantum laboratory measurements to real-world devices. This project, called Quantum Photonic Integration and Deployment (QuPID), has been awarded a $1 million grant to explore options over the next year. The team is one of 11 funded in the first phase of the National Science Foundation’s Quantum Science and Technology Demonstrations, with the goal of building a quantum technology robust enough for the real world and demonstrating its utility.
The QuPID project aims to build the first chips that harness the incredible precision of light for real-world measurements in the field with quantum semiconductors. Working with leading industrial partners, the researchers will develop quantum systems that can perform high-accuracy measurements. The team is targeting applications such as ultrasensitive environmental monitoring, GPS-free navigation, ultrasensitive semiconductor chip quality control, and detailed geological mapping of underground structures from the air or satellites.
The project’s principal investigator, Mackillo Kira, notes that the team is essentially trying to build quantum gadgets and demonstrate their performance so that people can integrate them into their own devices. This could include applications such as measuring the purity of a liquid or predicting major storms months in advance. The team’s deputy director, Parag Deotare, adds that transforming the quantum advantage demonstrated in labs to serve wide applications in the real world comes down to simplifying and packaging the instrumentation needed to manipulate and measure light properties.
Quantum Materials and Their Applications
The QuPID project is building on previous successes, including detecting previously undetectable radio signals via quantum sensing and discovering new particle-like elements within quantum materials using quantum light. The team has also introduced a groundbreaking material: ferroelectric nitrides that store electric fields much like fridge magnets retain magnetization. According to Zetian Mi, U-M professor of electrical engineering and computer science and a co-principal investigator, no other material shows such promise as an all-in-one quantum-integration solution.
Ferroelectric nitrides could both produce and detect quantum entangled light, maintain internal quantum states, and convert light across a broad range of wavelengths without losses—all within a single chip. These versatile materials are also compatible with today’s silicon-based microelectronics, paving the way for the planned laboratory-to-chip transition. The team’s expertise in quantum theory, materials research, and device integration will be crucial in developing these materials and integrating them into real-world applications.
Collaboration and Education
A key role of the potential quantum center is to recruit and educate future talent. In addition to collaborating with outreach facilities that are part of U-M, the team has commitments from the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum and St. Clair County Community College. The principal and co-principal investigators represent all three components of new technology development: theory, materials research, and device integration. The team includes researchers at Ohio State University, Harvard University, Michigan State University, the University of Arizona, and the University of Southern California, as well as industry researchers from companies such as Honeywell, Intel, and Raytheon.
Future Directions and Funding
By the end of the year, the team will submit a proposal laying out how they would pursue the most promising applications. If it succeeds, they will be awarded a further $4 million over two years to make progress toward demonstrating the technology in the lab. After that, the NSF has budgeted for six teams to build their real-world-ready quantum devices, supported by up to $50 million over five years. The Quantum Science and Technology Demonstrations are funded through the National Quantum Initiative Act.
The team will rely on the Lurie Nanofabrication Facility, the Michigan Center for Materials Characterization, and individual faculty labs to produce and study quantum materials. With its diverse range of expertise and collaborations, the QuPID project is well-positioned to make significant advances in the field of quantum photonic integration and deployment.
Quantum Sensing and Its Applications
Quantum sensing is a key area of research for the QuPID team, with potential applications in fields such as navigation, spectroscopy, and materials science. The team has already made breakthroughs in detecting previously undetectable radio signals via quantum sensing, and they are exploring new approaches to achieve robust quantum systems that remain agnostic to the applications.
According to Zheshen Zhang, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at U-M, the team’s expertise in quantum sensing will be crucial in developing real-world applications for quantum technology. The team is also working on creating design kits that can be utilized globally by researchers and industries to adapt for specific applications.
Conclusion
The QuPID project has the potential to make significant advances in the field of quantum photonic integration and deployment, with applications in fields such as environmental monitoring, navigation, and materials science. With its diverse range of expertise and collaborations, the team is well-positioned to develop real-world-ready quantum devices that can be used to solve some of the world’s most pressing problems. The project’s focus on education and outreach will also help to ensure that the next generation of researchers and engineers is equipped to continue advancing the field of quantum technology.
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