Archer Materials Ltd (ASX:AXE) is strongly focusing on the development of materials technology, including quantum computing, and has a firm pathway to commercial opportunities.
Quantum computing is a complex area, but Archer has expert staff and a highly effective R&D team as well as links to exterior university and industry support.
Among the experts is Archer’s Dr Martin Fuechsle who has recorded a highly informative webinar answering many questions about ‘all things quantum computing’.
Shareholders and investors were invited to provide questions and this proved popular with more than 55 questions submitted.
Archer collated, moderated and themed the questions, and Dr Fuechsle then provided the answers and explanations in the webinar and accompanying presentation.
Generating value
The webinar covers areas in quantum computing that generate the most economic value.
These include what the current technology barriers to adoption are; applications of quantum computing; the importance of intellectual property assets in the quantum economy; and how Archer’s 12CQ chip technology has the potential to overcome barriers to wide-scale quantum computing adoption to make a global impact.
Archer is well-positioned to successfully build and commercialise an operational qubit processor as a potential solution to the widespread use of quantum computing, as:
- Archer is using the only reported conducting qubit material capable of stable and robust quantum information processing at room-temperature: a key barrier to use for any future quantum computing powered consumer devices;
- Successful companies in the computing economy are founded and led by highly skilled people with deep technical expertise competing against large organisations; and
- The computing industry over time has not consolidated, with growth reliant on smaller companies offering disruptive materials technology innovations like 12CQ.
Quantum computing has the potential to impact all industries dependent on computational power.
Qubit processors are being developed in order to implement ‘quantum algorithms’ that may address applications that classical computers find extremely difficult or impossible:
- Applications that could greatly benefit from onboard qubit processors include complex image processing, and securing financial transactions and decentralised ledgers;
- General problem types: combinatorial optimisation (eg airline routes, portfolio optimisation), differential equations (eg medical device design, drug discovery), linear algebra (eg AI & machine learning), and factorisation (eg cryptography); and
- Quantum computing could provide greater information density over classical computers (eg molecular simulations).
According to the Boston Consulting Group, McKinsey and Goldman Sachs, value for investors in quantum computing is expected to increase rapidly as quantum hardware and its commercial viability matures.
Next steps, Single Qubit Control:
Archer’s technology development roadmap over the next 12 months focuses on gaining access to the spin state of a single qubit residing on individual carbon nanospheres, and to do so successfully:
- The world-first 12CQ chip development is being completed by Archer’s own in-house team;
- Archer has commercial access to the Research and Prototype Foundry in Sydney, to build the 12CQ qubit processor chip (60+ personnel);
- Collaborative partners at EPFL, Switzerland, provide development support with R&D personnel and infrastructure access (15+ personnel);
- UNSW Sydney provides access to conduct state-of-the-art quantum measurements and materials characterisation (10+ personnel).