Volkswagen Foundation Provides €550,000 Grant for Project on Quantum Computers

By Will SoutterMay 21 2012

The Volkswagen Foundation, in continuation of its support to the joint materials science project undertaken by the Universities of Osnabrück and Mainz, has allocated €550,000 to be disbursed over a period of three years.

The project which is an attempt to exhibit the operation of a quantum computer by means of electron spins is titled “Spin quantum computing based on endohedral fullerenes with integrated single-spin read-out via nitrogen vacancy centers in diamond.”

Professor Dr. Angelika Kühnle at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz who works along with Dr. Wolfgang Harneit on the project stated that the project aimed at building scalable models of quantum computers as silicon technology has reached its saturation. Though materials needed for adapting quantum computers for everyday use are yet to be invented, quantum computers are hypothetically superior in performing calculations.

The first project funded by the Volkswagen Foundation established that the diamonds with nitrogen-vacancy centers were capable of reading the quantum results computed by fullerenes. Fullerenes are essentially carbon molecules. The team led by Dr. Kühnle and Dr. Harneit used spherical fullerenes containing nitrogen atoms within. The output of quantum computing is in the form of quantum bits commonly known as qubits. These are the equivalent of binary digits or bits. Dr. Harneit conceptualized the process of applying fullerenes as qubits with the electrons of the enclosed nitrogen atoms providing the necessary spin. The first project failed to yield clear results because the spherical fullerenes did not fit correctly in the diamond centers. The second project aims to overcome this limitation by using cylindrical fullerenes or carbon nanotubes that will configure correctly in the diamonds.