Q-CTRL, a developer of quantum technologies through quantum control infrastructure software, has launched a quantum sensing division which it says has become one of the largest in the world.
Quantum sensing allows users to leverage the fragility of quantum technology (which exploits the physics of very small things to perform useful tasks), to detect tiny signals for aerospace, defence and civilian applications.
The company is developing a new generation of ultrasensitive “software-defined” quantum sensors for use in measuring gravity, motion and magnetic fields.
The new capabilities, which were showcased for the first time at the Army Quantum Technology Challenge (QTC) in Adelaide last week, will reportedly have applications in defence, PNT (positioning, navigation, and timing), minerals exploration, magnetic anomaly detection, persistent earth observation for climate monitoring, long-term weather forecasting and space exploration.
The Army QTC is part of the more than $60 million of publicly disclosed quantum sensing contracts awarded to Q-CTRL’s sensing team and its partners over the last 18 months. This includes a project with Advanced Navigation on hybrid classical-quantum inertial navigation, and both Modern Manufacturing Initiative (MMI) and CRC-P contracts developing space-qualified quantum sensors. In addition, Q-CTRL is a partner in the Australian Space Park project with Fleet Space Technologies, ATSpace and Alauda Aeronautics supporting a space manufacturing hub in Adelaide, which is scheduled to open in 2025.
Q-CTRL’s dedicated sensing team has expanded to 15 members in just over a year, and has reportedly attracted global experts from Australia, the UK and Europe.
“Q-CTRL’s mission is to make quantum technology useful," said Michael Biercuk, CEO and founder of Q-CTRL. "From day one we knew that quantum sensing provided a near-term opportunity to translate our specialisation in quantum control into value capture and new sovereign capabilities."
At Army QTC, the sensing team demonstrated how to meet the challenge of detecting sources of electromagnetic radiation (as could be emitted by an enemy communications or command-and-control system) using its own “software-defined” atomic magnetometers.
Q-CTRL says it is uniquely focused on the challenge of stabilising the hardware when placed on moving platforms and within complex environments subject to background “clutter”. According to the company, the augmentation of hardware with quantum control software enables the Q-CTRL team to deploy quantum sensors in the field without performance degradation and to detect key target signatures without being overwhelmed by background signals.