IBM (NYSE:IBM) has successfully connected and cooled two cryogenic quantum computing modules within a single environment, reaching an important engineering milestone in its plans to develop a fault-tolerant quantum computer.
The linked modules measure more than eight feet in both height and width. Testing demonstrated that the system can cool to 4 Kelvin in less than five days before ultimately reaching temperatures below 15 millikelvin.
Each module’s vacuum enclosure also provides as much as 12 times more space for wiring than IBM’s most widely deployed quantum computing systems, giving the company additional capacity as it works towards increasingly complex hardware configurations.
Modular Design Opens Path to Larger Quantum Systems
IBM has adopted a box-shaped modular architecture that allows multiple units to be connected in a row. The design incorporates the company’s “L-coupler” technology, which enables separate quantum chips to exchange information and function together as part of a larger computing system.
Under IBM’s current roadmap, L-couplers are expected to connect multiple processors by 2027, creating a quantum computer containing at least 1,000 programmable qubits.
The company also plans to install its Quantum Nighthawk processors inside the cryogenic modules later this year, allowing engineers to conduct further performance testing and assess the architecture at greater scale.
IBM Quantum Starling Remains Targeted for 2029
The modular cryogenic architecture is ultimately intended to provide a foundation for IBM Quantum Starling, which the company describes as its planned first fault-tolerant quantum computer.
IBM is targeting delivery of Starling in 2029. By that stage, the company expects individual cryogenic modules to accommodate thousands of qubits, providing the scale required for substantially more sophisticated quantum computing workloads.
“Bringing fault-tolerant quantum computers to industries depends on several fundamental advances,” said Jay Gambetta, Director of IBM Research and IBM Fellow. “The successful connection and operation of these cryogenic modules signals a leap forward in that direction and will accelerate our progress alongside continued innovation in quantum hardware, software, and algorithms.”
IBM Advances Quantum Computing Roadmap
Successfully connecting and operating two cryogenic modules represents another step towards overcoming the engineering challenges involved in scaling quantum computers beyond individual processors.
The architecture is designed to give IBM a modular route towards larger machines, combining multiple quantum chips while providing the extreme cooling, wiring capacity and connectivity necessary for their operation.
The announcement, issued by IBM from Yorktown Heights, New York, reinforces the company’s longer-term roadmap of progressing from interconnected processors towards a large-scale fault-tolerant quantum computing platform by the end of the decade.
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