Quantum computing is a technological revolution that will unleash the most dramatic changes in our everyday lives since the invention of the internet. Quantum computing has the power to impact every major global industry, from pharmaceutical research to climate action and personalized healthcare to space travel. However, today’s quantum technologies still suffer several drawbacks. They require cumbersome and rigid hardware, such as cooling to almost absolute zero, and suffer from both noise and decoherence. QuiX Quantum is bringing to market the first scalable universal quantum processor based on our disruptive photonics innovation. For the first time, we will be offering a scalable, marketable universal quantum processor that can be adopted by companies, research institutes, and government organizations to change the world in which we live. We are seeking EIC support in the form of blended finance to bring our first universal quantum processor product to market as early as 2026.

The rapidly growing global adaptation of digital technologies has brought an exponential increase in data and computing power consumption, and conventional supercomputers are now reaching their limit in terms of power and energy efficiency. Quantum computers have garnered attention as a way to overcome the struggles of classical computers. Technological progress is happening fast, but the so-called quantum advantage results reported have no meaningful real-world tasks yet, and severe scaling problems remain. An alternative strategy of encoding information in high-dimensional spaces (using quDits rather than qubits) is extremely promising for enhancing computational capacity, accuracy, speed, and noise robustness. However, this approach is still in its infancy. QuGANTIC proposes a science-towards-technology breakthrough in scalable data loading and learning with quantum processors, based on a novel concept of hybrid integration on a single photonic integrated chip (PIC). Our innovative target is the first quantum computer using quDits generated by quantum frequency combs with the potential to execute operations in a reduced number of steps and provide the first scalable PIC quantum computer. Learning distributions of data and generating artificial samples is a formidable task for classical computers, and we will use our novel quDit PIC platform to demonstrate that so-called quantum Generative Adversarial Networks can solve this task far better than classical systems. Our goal will make an unprecedented impact on economy, science and society, as it will predict the behavior of globally critical areas such as energy distribution, weather phenomena, risk assessments and epidemic spreads, by processing vast data sets with a drastic reduction of computational overheads. Our processors have a credible path to market, and QuGANTIC has the right hardware and software Partners to realize this enormous potential.

Randomness is a resource that enables applications such as efficient probabilistic algorithms, numerical integration, simulation, and optimization. In the last few years it was realized that quantum devices can generate probability distributions that are inaccessible with classical means. Hybrid Quantum Computational models combine classical processing with these quantum sampling machines to obtain computational advantage in some tasks. Moreover, NISQ (Noisy, Intermediate-Scale Quantum) technology may suffice to obtain this advantage in the near term, long before we can build large-scale, universal quantum computers. PHOQUSING aims to implement PHOtonic Quantum SamplING machines based on large, reconfigurable interferometers with active feedback, and state-of-the-art photon sources based both on quantum dots and parametric down-conversion. We will overview the different architectures enabling the generation of these hard-to-sample distributions using integrated photonics, optimizing the designs and studying the tolerance to errors. We will build two quantum sampling machines with different technologies, as a way to do cross-checks while exploiting all advantages of each platform. These machines will establish a new state-of-the-art in photonic reconfigurability, system complexity, and integration. Finally, we plan to perform first, proof-of-principle demonstrations of Hybrid Quantum Computation applications in optimization, machine learning, and graph theory. The PHOQUSING team includes long-term scientific collaborators who were among the first to demonstrate quantum photonic samplers; two of the leading European start-ups in the relevant quantum technologies; and theoretical experts in photonics and quantum information science. This project will help establish photonics as a leading new quantum computational technology in Europe, addressing the science-to-technology transition towards a new industrial sector with a large foreseeable economic impact.

Despite the significant advances that photonic integrated circuits (PICs) offer in terms of miniaturization, power consumption and functionalities, they run into scalability and cost issues, related to the fabrication yield, the increased integration and packaging complexity, the lack of wafer scale compatible processes and the lack of integration and packaging standards. Furthermore, so far photonic packaging considered the sub-GHz electrical connections to the PICs as a separate and second priority issue, until the number of electrical IOs of the PICs was too large to ignore. POLYNICES aims to address these challenges with the development of a novel general purpose photonic integration technology, compatible with wafer scale processes that will reduce the production costs of photonic modules by at least 10x. POLYNICES will develop for the first time a polymer based Electro-Optic PCB (EOPCB) motherboard that will host Si3N4 chiplets, InP components and micro-optical elements. POLYNICES invests in Si3N4 platform with PZT actuators to realize complex structures in only 1x1 cm2 chiplets with ultra-low power consumption. The chiplets’ grid array electrical pads and the use of flip-chip integration on vertical alignment stops will allow optical alignment and electrical connection in one step. The standard size and interfaces of the chiplets as well as the electronic IC co-packaging on the same EOPCB, provides excellent scalability and customization, and significantly simplifies packaging. Dielectric rod THz antennas will be integrated on the EOPCB taking advantage of its good HF properties. Using the above novel concepts and building blocks, POLYNICES will develop a fully integrated optoelectronic FMCW THz spectrometer with THz antenna array and beam steering abilities for quality control in plastics, a 16x16 quantum processor with integrated 780 nm light source and non-linear crystals and a 24x24 quantum processor with integrated squeezed light state source.

Optical clocks are amazingly stable frequency standards, which would remain accurate to within one second over the age of the universe. Bringing these clocks from the lab to the market offers great opportunities for telecommunications, navigation, sensing, and science, but no commercial optical clock exists. Europe's world leading optical clock technology within academia and national metrology institutes combined with its strong photonics industry, provide us with a golden opportunity to take a leading position in this strategic technology. With AQuRA we want to seize this opportunity and build up a sovereign, efficient industrial capability able to build the world’s most advanced quantum clocks. We will deliver the first industry-built, rugged and transportable optical clock with an accuracy that approaches the best laboratory clocks. Our work is based on the experience that many of us gained by building an optical clock with industry during the Quantum Flagship project iqClock (2018-2022). In AQuRA industry takes the lead and will deliver a 20x more accurate clock in a 3x smaller volume at TRL 7. This will be possible by combining our industry partners’ experience in rugged photonics products with the know-how of our world-leading academic and national metrology institute partners. We will build, strengthen and diversify the European supply chain of optical clock components, filling critical gaps in the supply chain, and thereby establish a sovereign, competitive industry for optical clocks. In particular we will develop the rugged laser sources, miniaturized optical interface circuits, and the atom source needed for an optical clock, all of which will also become products on their own. Partner Menlo Systems will integrate these components with their ultrastable laser system into the AQuRA optical clock. We will accelerate market uptake by demonstrating our clock's usefulness to applications in telecom, geodesy and metrology, and by engaging with end users.