You’ve probably heard that quantum computing promises to solve in seconds problems that would take a current supercomputer centuries. However, this technology has an Achilles heel that is difficult to overcome: heat.
To work, These systems require such extreme cold that it borders on the impossible, a thermal barrier that has slowed their expansion.. This is where David Cerviño, a 27-year-old engineer trained between Vigo and Barcelona, comes in.
And far from the spotlight of Silicon Valley and the big American technology companies, it has achieved a crucial engineering milestone, which is designing the first microchip capable of operating at -268 degrees, as mentioned in Faro de Vigo.
In an environment where conventional electronics stop working, its invention opens the door for these computers to stop being million-dollar prototypes and become a scalable reality.
A chip capable of operating on the edge of absolute zero
To understand the magnitude of the achievement, we must understand the fragility of quantum data. Qubits, the minimum unit of information in these systems, are extremely sensitive; If the temperature rises just a fraction of a degree, the quantum state collapses and the calculation is lost.
Therefore, keeping the environment stable near absolute zero (-273.15 degrees) is a nightmare. Today, the industrial «freezers» needed to cool these processors cost around one million euros.
It is a prohibitive cost that makes it unfeasible to have a dedicated machine for each qubit. This barrier to entry is the main reason why the technology has not yet left research laboratories and large companies.
Fresquiño, the sensor that allows qubits to be cooled
Cerviño’s solution called Fresquiño sensor, it is a chip specifically designed to monitor and operate submerged in liquid helium and under vacuum conditions, withstanding temperatures of -268 degrees with a margin of error of just 0.78 degrees.
We are not dealing with a theory or a computer simulation, since the design has been validated by the IEEE Solid State Circuits Letters, one of the most prestigious publications in the sector, which confirms its viability.
The device allows you to control the temperature and condition of components with a precision and cost that current systems cannot match, solving one of the biggest engineering headaches.
The jump from 100 to 10,000 qubits
The importance of this chip lies in its ability to scale computing power. Currently, quantum computers are stuck at around 100 qubits because the cooling infrastructure needed to handle more units is physically and economically unsustainable.
But With the technology proposed by Cerviño, the way is opened to build architectures with tens of thousands of qubits. This is the leap necessary for quantum computing to stop focusing on theories and start solving useful problems for society.
From the design of new drugs and materials to banking security encryption. This advance places Spanish engineering at the center of the global technological board, coinciding with the local boost represented by the future Sparc chip factory.
Cerviño’s project, conceived in Holland, manufactured in Taiwan and internationally validated, demonstrates that the race for quantum supremacy is not won only with better algorithms, but with resistant and efficient hardware.