Consortium for quantum computers receives 50 million euros in research funding

14 German companies, research institutes and universities have joined forces to further develop quantum technology. They have now received funding for this from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

A consortium of 14 German companies, research institutes and universities has received 50 million euros in research funding to further develop quantum technology. Forty-two million euros came from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, while the consortium partners contributed a further eight million euros to the joint project. The consortium's joint research project, called "PhoQuant", is also hosted by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

With the help of the funding, the consortium intends to build a demonstration and test facility for photonic quantum computer chips. This will involve attaching light channels to silicon chips that can be used to control and monitor quanta. The chips can be applied, for example, in the chemical industry, biomedicine and materials science. The consortium plans to present a first prototype in about two and a half years. The joint project is expected to end in five years. By then, the goal is to complete a quantum computer chip that can also perform complicated calculations. "We are at the dawn of the quantum computing era and the global race for market share of this future technology has begun. The funding now provided for this research alliance is an important building block for a quantum computer made in Germany," says Q.Ant CEO Michael Förtsch.

Founded in 2018 by the Trumpf Group, the start-up Q.Ant is leading the consortium. HQS Quantum Simulations from Karlsruhe, the Stuttgart University spin-off Swabian Instruments, TEM Messtechnik from Hannover, FiconTec from Emden and Menlo Systems from Martinsried are also involved in the project. University partners include the University of Paderborn, the Westphalian Wilhelms University of Münster, the Friedrich Schiller University of Jena, the University of Ulm, the Humboldt University of Berlin, the Free University of Berlin, the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering, and the Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems.