Latest news with #ZacharyVernon
Globe and Mail
4 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Canada's Xanadu achieves worldwide first with error-resistant quantum chip
Toronto startup Xanadu Quantum Technologies Inc. is reporting a new milestone in the effort to develop a form of light-based quantum computing that can operate at commercial scale. For the first time anywhere, Xanadu researchers have created a single chip that embodies a powerful type of error-detection code in a pulse of laser light. If a number of such chips could be harnessed together, it would open the door to a quantum computer that can deliver reliable results with practical value. 'This is something that's been on our roadmap for a long time,' Zachary Vernon, Xanadu's chief technology officer for hardware, told The Globe and Mail. A technical description of the chip was published Wednesday in the journal Nature. The development is significant 'because the chip platform is supposed to be scalable,' said Daniel Soh, an associate professor of optical science at the University of Arizona in Tucson. 'In the future, we will need millions or billions of this kind of devices on a chip. This result is a massive step towards that goal,' said Dr. Soh, who is not affiliated with Xanadu. Canada 'a sweet spot' for growing quantum computing industry, expert says Christian Weedbrook, Xanadu's founder and chief executive officer, said the development means it is possible to envision a quantum-computing system operating at the scale of a data centre, with some 5,000 servers fitting into a facility less than 10,000 square metres in size. 'We're also thinking ahead to how we can add more density in there, so that'll change,' he said. Earlier this year Xanadu published a result showing how its form of quantum computing could be easily modularized. This latest step is aimed at making a machine large enough to solve relevant problems but not so large that it becomes impractical for commercial purposes. It is the latest example of a shift in the focus and tempo of advancements in the quantum computing world. Overall, the goal remains to create a computer that runs on qubits – interconnected physical elements that exhibit quantum behaviour – instead of the standard bits of a conventional digital system. Where a bit can be used to represent a one or a zero in a mathematical calculation, a qubit can be a mixture of both. This dual nature, when combined with many other qubits, is what allows a quantum computer, in principle, to vastly outperform a conventional computer at certain kinds of calculations that are important for data security and other applications. While various companies, including Google, IBM and Microsoft, have experimented with different types of qubits, all of them face the same challenge: Quantum systems are sensitive to disturbance and difficult to isolate from the rest of the world, which makes quantum computers especially error-prone. To counter this, qubits can be linked to check each other for signs of failure during a calculation. But the price for such redundancy is that many more qubits are needed to build a reliable computer powerful enough to solve real-world problems. More recently, teams have sought to exploit various mathematical codes, which are ways of tying qubits together, to make error correction more robust. Of particular interest are Gottesman-Kitaev-Preskill (GKP) codes. First proposed in 2001, they are challenging to implement but especially amenable for quantum computer builders such as Xanadu, whose machines use qubits made of light moving through a fibre-optic network. Xanadu's new chip corrals incoming particles of light, called photons, into a quantum state that allows them to work together to form a GKP qubit. The chip has four outputs, three of which are connected to detectors that can reveal whether the fourth is in a state that would allow it to be useful for a quantum calculation. In a working quantum computer, such chips would provide an initial layer of error detection that would then be further augmented by other error-correction techniques when chips are combined. Similar strategies are being explored by other companies. Last week, Nord Quantique, based in Sherbrooke, Que., demonstrated that it had successfully encoded microwave photons bouncing around inside a metal cavity with a GKP code. Meanwhile, Xanadu still has more obstacles to overcome. Chief among them is finding ways to overcome signal loss, which occurs when photons are absorbed by the materials they are moving through. In addition to making its light-based technology work, Xanadu and direct competitors such as PsiQuantum, Corp. of Palo Alto, Calif., are racing against big tech companies developing computers with qubits that rely on special superconducting materials kept at extremely cold temperatures. Light-based systems offer a different set of advantages, including the fact that they can operate at room temperature. While no system has yet emerged as a clear winner, Dr. Soh says light-based quantum computers may end up inching ahead because once the key technical challenges are solved, they will be easier to scale up.
Cision Canada
4 days ago
- Business
- Cision Canada
Xanadu Unveils First On-Chip Error-Resistant Photonic Qubit
TORONTO, June 4, 2025 /CNW/ - Xanadu has achieved a significant milestone in the development of scalable quantum hardware by generating error-resistant photonic qubits on an integrated chip platform. A foundational result in Xanadu's roadmap, this first-ever demonstration of such qubits on a chip is now published in Nature. This breakthrough builds on Xanadu's recent announcement of the Aurora system, which demonstrated—for the first time—all key components required to build a modular, networked, and scalable photonic quantum computer. With this latest demonstration of robust qubit generation using silicon-based photonic chips, Xanadu further strengthens the scalability pillar of its architecture. The quantum states produced in this experiment, known as GKP states, consist of superpositions of many photons to encode information in an error-resistant manner—an essential requirement for future fault-tolerant quantum computers. These states allow logic operations to be performed using deterministic, room-temperature-compatible techniques, and they are uniquely well-suited for networking across chips using standard fiber connections. This demonstration of generating photonic qubits was enabled by a number of key technological achievements from Xanadu's hardware team. These include the development of photon-number-resolving detectors with detection efficiencies above 99%, the fabrication of customized ultra-low loss silicon nitride waveguides on 300 mm wafer platforms, and the implementation of in-house state-of-the-art optical packaging. "GKP states are, in a sense, the optimal photonic qubit, since they enable logic gates and error correction at room temperature and using relatively straightforward, deterministic operations," says Zachary Vernon, CTO of Hardware at Xanadu. "This demonstration is an important empirical milestone showing our recent successes in loss reduction and performance improvement across chip fabrication, component design, and detector efficiency." The next hurdle towards a utility-scale photonic quantum computer remains clear: further reduction of optical loss will allow for higher quality GKP states suitable for fault-tolerance. With another significant milestone in its hardware roadmap complete, Xanadu remains focused on further optimizing fabrication and photonics packaging processes to alleviate optical loss across its platform. About Xanadu: Xanadu is a Canadian quantum computing company with the mission to build quantum computers that are useful and available to people everywhere. Founded in 2016, Xanadu has become one of the world's leading quantum hardware and software companies. The company also leads the development of PennyLane, an open-source software library for quantum computing and application development. Visit or follow us on X @XanaduAI.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Xanadu Unveils First On-Chip Error-Resistant Photonic Qubit
TORONTO, June 4, 2025 /PRNewswire/ - Xanadu has achieved a significant milestone in the development of scalable quantum hardware by generating error-resistant photonic qubits on an integrated chip platform. A foundational result in Xanadu's roadmap, this first-ever demonstration of such qubits on a chip is now published in Nature. This breakthrough builds on Xanadu's recent announcement of the Aurora system, which demonstrated—for the first time—all key components required to build a modular, networked, and scalable photonic quantum computer. With this latest demonstration of robust qubit generation using silicon-based photonic chips, Xanadu further strengthens the scalability pillar of its architecture. The quantum states produced in this experiment, known as GKP states, consist of superpositions of many photons to encode information in an error-resistant manner—an essential requirement for future fault-tolerant quantum computers. These states allow logic operations to be performed using deterministic, room-temperature-compatible techniques, and they are uniquely well-suited for networking across chips using standard fiber connections. This demonstration of generating photonic qubits was enabled by a number of key technological achievements from Xanadu's hardware team. These include the development of photon-number-resolving detectors with detection efficiencies above 99%, the fabrication of customized ultra-low loss silicon nitride waveguides on 300 mm wafer platforms, and the implementation of in-house state-of-the-art optical packaging. "GKP states are, in a sense, the optimal photonic qubit, since they enable logic gates and error correction at room temperature and using relatively straightforward, deterministic operations," says Zachary Vernon, CTO of Hardware at Xanadu. "This demonstration is an important empirical milestone showing our recent successes in loss reduction and performance improvement across chip fabrication, component design, and detector efficiency." The next hurdle towards a utility-scale photonic quantum computer remains clear: further reduction of optical loss will allow for higher quality GKP states suitable for fault-tolerance. With another significant milestone in its hardware roadmap complete, Xanadu remains focused on further optimizing fabrication and photonics packaging processes to alleviate optical loss across its platform. About Xanadu: Xanadu is a Canadian quantum computing company with the mission to build quantum computers that are useful and available to people everywhere. Founded in 2016, Xanadu has become one of the world's leading quantum hardware and software companies. The company also leads the development of PennyLane, an open-source software library for quantum computing and application development. Visit or follow us on X @XanaduAI. View original content: SOURCE Xanadu Quantum Technologies Inc. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Cision Canada
24-04-2025
- Business
- Cision Canada
Xanadu and AFRL Forge Strategic R&D Partnership to Advance Photonic Quantum Technologies
TORONTO, April 24, 2025 /CNW/ - Xanadu Quantum Technologies Inc. (Xanadu) has announced a new strategic research and development partnership with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). The partnership aims to accelerate the development of silicon photonic integrated circuits for quantum applications, with the goal of delivering transformative technologies for both military and commercial applications. Xanadu, founded in 2016 and based in Toronto, Canada, is known for developing cloud-accessible photonic quantum computers and open-source software for quantum machine learning and chemistry simulation. In January 2025, Xanadu unveiled Aurora, the world's first complete prototype of a universal photonic quantum computer, featuring a modular architecture with 35 networked photonic chips and 13 kilometers of fiber optics, combining all the subsystems necessary to implement universal and fault-tolerant quantum computation. The four-year R&D agreement combines AFRL's expertise in deployed advanced technologies with Xanadu's pioneering work in photonic quantum computing and chip-scale integration. Through the agreement, AFRL will provide Xanadu access to its Process Design Kit (PDK) for silicon photonic circuits. Xanadu will evaluate the PDK within its software ecosystem and offer technical feedback to help AFRL tailor its chip designs for quantum-specific applications, including entangled photon generation and squeezed light sources—critical elements for quantum computing and communication systems. "Today's environment requires the cooperation of industry partners to help lay the groundwork for deployable quantum systems that meet the evolving needs of the U.S. Air Force and broader Department of Defense," stated Dr. Mike Hayduk, Deputy Director of AFRL's Information Directorate. Beyond technological advancements, the partnership will facilitate joint exploration of commercial applications, manufacturing roadmaps, and other knowledge exchange. Xanadu will offer insights into potential markets and end-users for quantum photonic processors and related systems. AFRL will benefit from evaluating Xanadu's innovative designs, simulation tools, and software frameworks, including its patented approaches to quantum machine learning, quantum chemistry, and fault-tolerant architectures. "We're excited to collaborate with AFRL on this important initiative," said Dr. Zachary Vernon, Xanadu's Chief Technology Officer for Hardware. "This partnership gives us a unique opportunity to push the boundaries of photonic quantum hardware and bring real-world applications closer to reality." Dr. Vernon highlighted that this new partnership underscores the growing recognition of the important role that industry-based quantum technologies can play in enhancing U.S. national security, advancing scientific leadership, and boosting economic competitiveness. By promoting collaboration between the public and private sectors, the U.S. can leverage the specialized expertise, innovative strategies, and substantial resources of the private sector, which will help accelerate advancements in the nation's future capabilities. As quantum technologies transition from lab to field, partnerships like this one between AFRL and Xanadu showcase how government and industry can effectively work together to transform bold ideas into real-world value. About Xanadu: Xanadu is a Canadian quantum computing company with the mission to build quantum computers that are useful and available to people everywhere. Founded in 2016, Xanadu has become one of the world's leading quantum hardware and software companies. The company also leads the development of PennyLane, an open-source software library for quantum computing and application development. Visit or follow us on X @XanaduAI.
