#superconductingquantumcircuits

[govindhtech]

Superconducting Quantum Circuits Stay Stable for Over a Year

Overview

This paper proposes in situ deposited aluminum oxide passivation for superconducting microwave resonators to improve durability. To shield tantalum and aluminum surfaces from environmental degradation, researchers deposited this protective layer under ultra-high vacuum as the film grew. These passivated devices show negligible microwave loss and good quality after 14 months of air exposure, according to experiments. However, native oxide resonators performed poorly due to interfacial defects and chemical oxidation. Our results give a scalable technique to retain material chemical integrity for reliable superconducting quantum circuits.

Quantum Advancement via Superconducting Circuit Protection

Quantum computing has advanced significantly after a team of researchers from National Taiwan University (NTU) and National Tsing Hua University (NTHU) solved one of the most persistent “materials bottlenecks” in scalable quantum hardware. A new atomic-scale "shield" has allowed the scientists to show that critical superconducting elements can work well for almost 14 months in air. This extreme stability may enable long-lasting quantum processors.

Searching for Stability

Superconducting quantum circuits are promising quantum computer platforms. These circuits pair qubits and read quantum states using superconducting microwave resonators. These resonators perform best with a high internal quality factor (Qi), which measures microwave energy waste.

However, these parts are very delicate. As soon as exposed to oxygen, their surfaces produce "native oxides" as Ta2O5 and AlOx . These are commonly thin tantalum (Ta) or aluminum films. These oxides may appear protective despite being permeable and physically defective, according to sources. O2 and moisture slowly permeate these oxides, forming two-level systems (TLSs), small defects that absorb microwave radiation and quickly degrade device performance.

The Universal “In Situ” Solution

Yi-Ting Cheng, Minghwei Hong, and Jueinai Kwo led the research team to develop a global in situ passivation strategy to combat this “aging” effect. This novel method prevents oxides from developing, unlike standard methods that clean or etch them away.

A multi-chamber ultra-high vacuum (UHV) system generates tantalum and aluminum epitaxial films on atomically pure sapphire substrates. After the superconducting metal forms, the researchers install a 2–3-nanometer covering of amorphous aluminum oxide (Al2O3) without breaking the vacuum.

The researchers' study states that “this approach offers three key advantages,” including chemically clean surfaces, contamination-free interfaces, and a thick capping layer that prevents environmental deterioration.

Fourteen months of best results

Study results are outstanding. The researchers made microstrip resonators using their innovative passivation process and compared them to native oxide devices.

Both resonators initially had internal quality factors above one million (106). Performance changed dramatically over time. Resonators insulated by the in situ Al2O3 layer showed no degradation after 14 months of air exposure. Qi reduced considerably in native oxide tantalum resonators after two months. Aluminum deteriorated faster; unprotected Al resonators lost an order of magnitude in two weeks.

The scientists utilized XPS to analyze the films' chemical makeup to figure out why the shield worked so well. XPS tests showed that the in situ Al2O3 layer prevented the superconducting metal from oxidizing for months.

The Scalability Path

This innovation overcomes a major quantum technology scaling challenge. Large-scale quantum computer components must be made utilizing complex, multi-step processes that may involve storage or transport. Equipment must be sturdy during realistic “storage and transportation” stages.

By combining passivated tantalum circuits into two-dimensional Fluxonium superconducting qubits, the researchers produced dielectric loss tangents comparable to recent state-of-the-art investigations. The authors concluded, “Our findings establish a robust, scalable passivation strategy that addresses a longstanding materials challenge,” but they warned that more research is needed to find even stronger protective layers that can withstand specific industrial developers like TMAH-based chemicals. They think this method provides a solid materials path for quantum hardware. These researchers protected the computer's "heart" from environmental damage to promote reliable, large-scale quantum computing.

[govindhtech]

John Martinis to Announce Qolab inc Quantum Innovation

Quantum computing pioneer John M. Martinis aspires to build the most powerful quantum computer, delighting the tech sector. Michael Martinis, who co-won the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics for superconducting quantum circuits, is rethinking quantum hardware with his new startup, Qolab inc.

A Macroscopic World History

Martinis is known as a “hardware guy” who prefers lab physics to textbook abstraction. His rise to the top began at Berkeley in the 1980s. During this time, he and his colleagues investigated whether quantum mechanics, which applies to subatomic particles, might be applied to larger systems.

Their discovery of “macroscopic quantumness”—the state in which a large number of charged particles in a circuit operate as a single quantum particle—led to the invention of superconducting circuits used by Google, IBM, and others. He and Michel Devoret and John Clarke shared the Nobel Prize for their efforts.

Martinis impact on the field has been shown twice. Besides his groundbreaking discoveries, he managed Google researchers that achieved “quantum supremacy.” Though classical supercomputers eventually outperformed it, their machine was the only one that could check a random quantum circuit's output for almost five years.

The Qolab Inc.: Beyond “Noisy”

Despite his success with IT giants, Martinis now advocates a “radical shift” in quantum system construction. He created Qolab to escape the “noisy” stage of quantum computing, which is characterized by unstable qubits and high error rates, by designing a bottom-up error-correction mechanism.

In an interview with New Scientist, Martinis said established approaches frequently miss the physical and manufacturing complexity needed for truly unequaled computational capacity. Specifically, he notes:

Wiring complex systems requires managing thousands of connections.

Noise reduction: shielding fragile quantum states.

Scalable fabrication: Making complex quantum processors reliably.

Prioritizing “Plumbing” and accuracy

This “ultimate” machine prioritizes high-fidelity gates over qubit count, a criterion often used by competitors to establish dominance. The fundamental obstacle to scaling quantum computers, according to Martinis, is “plumbing” qubit interconnects and control systems.

Martinis claims he can improve these methods to develop a computer that outperforms IBM and Google in real-world tasks. This new architecture has these purposes:

Material Science: Modeling complex molecular structures for batteries or innovative materials.

Cryptography: Solving complex mathematical problems that underpin cybersecurity.

Drug Discovery: Quantum modeling speeds drug development.

A Split Community

Martinis' remark has prompted a heated debate over when science will achieve quantum usefulness. Some technologists think large-scale quantum computers can be constructed in a decade, but others doubt it. Scalability may take time.

Nobel laureate adherence to hardware-first strategy shows the global quantum domination race's high stakes. Martinis's ability to handle “intractable” problems for traditional computers could change cybersecurity and logistics, according to experts.

The 2026 Outlook

IT professionals are now focused on Boston because Martinis will headline the Quantum. Conference of Tech World 2026. His initial technical benchmarks for Qolab's new architecture are expected there. This talk will likely prove if his “ground-up” method can build the “ultimate” machine he promised.

For a man who has changed the sport twice, the stakes are great. Martinis' work at Qolab could determine whether the quantum revolution is a theoretical goal or a near-term reality as he searches for the next key physics turning point.