The new 20-qubit quantum computer further strengthens Finland’s position among the countries investing in quantum computing. Finland completed a 5-qubit quantum computer in 2021.

In November 2020, Finland started its quantum computer projects with a total budget of EUR 20.7 million and a few potentially dead or alive cats. Its government wanted to develop a 50-qubit quantum computer in 2024. In the coming years, the development will continue as the Finnish government has announced a budget of EUR 70 million (~US$74.3 million) to scale up the quantum computer towards 300 qubits and quantum advantage.

Scaling up of the now completed 20-qubit quantum computer to 50-qubits should be complete by 2024 if the cats co-operate.

IQM Quantum Computers Jan Goetz CEO said: “We are proud of this moment. It is a pivotal achievement in our journey for our team, Finland, and the European quantum ecosystem. This is not just a testament to working with partners in the ecosystem but also to our technological capabilities. As IQM is a European quantum leader contributing to the strategic European agenda, we will continue to promote collaboration and engage various stakeholders to drive more investments in supporting the ecosystem in scaling up and becoming more competitive.”

VTT’s Research Manager Pekka Pursula elaborates: “We have, for example, improved integration methods and signaling. We have also developed manufacturing and packaging methods that allow a greater number of qubits to be placed on a single silicon chip and to conduct their electrical signals at temperatures close to absolute zero. The new quantum computer has 20 qubits on a silicon chip. However, we have developed the integration methods to increase the number of qubits even further.”

The new 20-qubit quantum computer is located at VTT premises in Micronova, the national research infrastructure for micro and nanotechnology in Espoo in the south of Finland. Finland’s first 5-qubit quantum computer is also located on the same premises.