The funding will help ColdQuanta advance its Quantum Core technology platform, leading to quantum signal processing systems, quantum positioning systems, and quantum computers.
ColdQuanta has announced it has been awarded $1M from NASA’s Civilian Commercialisation Readiness Pilot Program (CCRPP). The program will enable ColdQuanta to develop significantly smaller cold atom systems with a high level of ruggedness.
This award expands on the success of ColdQuanta’s Quantum Core technology which was developed with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and is currently operating aboard the International Space Station (ISS). The company expects continued advancement of its technology to lead to compact systems of unprecedented capability, including quantum-based timekeeping, navigation, and radio-frequency field sensing, as well as quantum communications, computing, and simulation.
‘We believe this new award from NASA is clear validation of the success of the deployment of ColdQuanta’s Quantum Core on the ISS and of ColdQuanta’s expertise in quantum systems,’ said Bo Ewald, CEO of ColdQuanta. ‘The new funding will help accelerate our development and productisation of quantum-based technologies for signal processing, global positioning, and computing. While it is still early in the development of all quantum-based technologies, we see an enormous opportunity for ColdQuanta in these new markets.’
‘The NASA commercialisation program helps us to continue to develop our Quantum Core technology, reduce the size of our products, and refine our manufacturing processes,’ said Dr Dana Anderson, founder and chief technology officer of ColdQuanta. ‘All of these advances are steps toward our goal of commercialising entirely new types of quantum systems. It will be especially exciting to deliver another rugged, turnkey cold atom system in a deployable chassis at the end of the effort.’
The CCRPP program reflects NASA’s interest in driving quantum technologies towards a higher level of maturity and commercial viability. The award, matched with internal ColdQuanta research and development funding, will optimise several manufacturing processes and result in a highly compact cold atom system suitable for portable quantum atomic devices.
Ultimately the size reduction and subsystem improvements will result in delivery of a self-contained cold-atom instrument (currently 400 litres) of approximately 40 litres. The system is targeted to enable deployable atomic clocks, cold-atom-based sensors, and inertial measurement units suitable for platforms ranging from ground vehicles to satellites.
