Date: 26 November 2024
Source: SemiQon
Finnish startup SemiQon announced the release of what it calls the first CMOS transistor fully optimized for cryogenic conditions, specifically designed to support scalable quantum computers.
Quantum processors typically operate at extremely low temperatures, often a few millikelvin above absolute zero. However, supporting electronics – such as control and readout circuitry – usually run at much higher temperatures, which creates engineering challenges and limits scalability. SemiQon’s cryogenic-optimized transistor targets this bottleneck.
What Is Special About This Transistor?
SemiQon reports that the new device:
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Is a CMOS transistor engineered specifically for cryogenic operation,
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Dramatically reduces heat dissipation, one of the key obstacles to bringing more electronics close to the quantum chip,
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Improves the performance of control electronics at low temperatures, which is critical for scaling up qubit counts.
By reducing the thermal load inside dilution refrigerators, this technology can help quantum computers grow in size without exponentially increasing cooling complexity and cost.
Impact on Quantum Hardware Scalability
Scalable quantum computing is not only about qubits; it also depends on:
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Wiring density from room temperature to the chip,
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Cryogenic control electronics that can sit physically closer to the qubits, and
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Efficient ways to manage power and heat in extreme conditions.
SemiQon’s cryo-optimized transistor addresses precisely these challenges and could become a key building block for future large-scale quantum processors.
