INTERCOM: A high-performance ion-photon interface to enable multi-core trapped ion quantum computing

Quantum computation is heralded as a paradigm shifting technology, to revolutionise drug discovery, chemistry, communications, and even our understanding of the natural world. However, the vast promises of any scientific discovery must be measured against the engineering challenges which hold back its delivery. In this project, partners from industry, academia, and the public sector will produce a core component that is critical to the realisation of scalable quantum computing. This will help enable the efficient interfacing of light and matter at the single quantum level, which will allow quantum processing nodes to combine resources and operate in synchronicity over vast distances. The construction of networked processors from large numbers of smaller modules will lift one of the principal technical restrictions on the route to full-scale quantum computation.

At its heart, our challenge is to create a device enabling the transfer of quantum information between trapped atomic ions and single optical photons. However, while atoms may be readily trapped with electric and magnetic fields, 'trapping' light remains a considerable endeavour. The natural solution is to confine the light between two micro-mirrors in the form of a resonant optical cavity, engineering a strong interaction between the atom and optical field via their mutual overlap. However, the realisation of optical cavities as a quantum interface has been historically limited to an academic environment, relying upon fabrication methods that are unsuited to the construction of the quantum computers of the future. To fulfil the objectives of this project, we will harness and develop innovative technologies in the creation of a robust, turn-key cavity interface suitable for scalable integration in ion and atom-based quantum networks.