Quantum Machines unveils third-generation quantum control solution - Inside Quantum Technology

Quantum Machines unveils third-generation quantum control solution – Inside Quantum Technology

Time Stamp: August 30, 2023 8:15 AM
Quantum Machines unveils third-generation quantum control solution - Inside Quantum Technology PlatoBlockchain Data Intelligence. Vertical Search. Ai.
By Dan O’Shea posted 30 Aug 2023

As the race for more and more qubits continues, it is a good time to remember that quantum computing has no future without the ability to control all those qubits. Quantum Machines this week announced its third-generation control solution, the OPX1000, which the company said hits the mark in key performance metrics, including feedback capabilities, runtime, analog performance and channel density. 

The new solution is now being deployed with select customers at leading quantum research laboratories and will be generally available later this year. Quantum Machines, which already has control solutions deployed in more than 200 quantum computing facilities around the world, said the OPX1000 is aimed at builders of the largest and most advanced quantum computers in the world. In addition to delivering on performance, Quantum Machines said the solution also supports capabilities like automated setup, embedded calibration, real-time error correction and more.

The OPX1000 offers up to 64 output channels and 16 input channels in three rack units, and multiple OPX1000 units can be connected to cost-effectively control the largest QPUs, and new ones in the future that will rapidly scale up qubit counts, the company said. This third-generation platform builds on the success of Quantum Machines’ previous OPX controllers, which are already in use by hundreds of leading research labs, HPC centers, and quantum computer manufacturers.

Itamar Sivan, CEO and co-founder of Quantum Machines, claimed of the new solution, “With the highest channel density in the industry, an analog frontend that is tailored for quantum computing rather than general RF equipment, unmatched real-time performance and datacenter reliability, it offers a cost-effective solution for scaling quantum computers to thousands of qubits without compromising on performance. This last point is critical – everyone is talking about scaling up, but the real bottlenecks in quantum computing start at a smaller scale. We have demonstrated, with some of our world-leading customers, how to overcome many of these critical bottlenecks with our OPX+ system at smaller scales. Now, with the OPX1000, we bring these capabilities into the required scales of the biggest QPUs expected in the coming years.”

The OPX1000 leverages the Pulse Processing Unit (PPU) that Quantum Machines announced in early 2022. The PPU optimizes the integration of quantum operations with ultra-fast classical processing, and combines parametric pulse generation, real-time, Turing-complete classical computing, as well as on-the-fly pulse manipulations, and comprehensive control flow capabilities. OPX1000 is programmed using QM’s intuitive pulse-level language – QUA, or at the gate level using the OpenQASM3 to QUA compiler extension, which allows complex quantum algorithms to be run right out of the box, the company said.

The OPX1000 will be on display this week at SQA 2023 in Munich, Germany, and next month at the IEEE Quantum Week, which takes place Sept. 17-22, in Washington, D.C.  

Dan O’Shea has covered telecommunications and related topics including semiconductors, sensors, retail systems, digital payments and quantum computing/technology for over 25 years.

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