QUANTUM-VIBES · An innovative vibration decoupling systems operated at mK temperatures for cryogenic detectors and quantum computing

The booming fields of cryogenic detectors and quantum computing require mK temperatures, driving the rapidly growing market for dry dilution refrigerators (DDRs). This key technology enables a high degree of automation and makes ultracold temperatures accessible to non-expert end users. However, DDRs induce mechanical vibrations that dramatically degrade the performance of particle detectors and destroy the coherence of quantum bits - a potential showstopper for quantum technologies. We have overcome these limitations with an innovative vibration decoupling system (VDS), which has been developed in an ongoing ERC Starting Grant for fundamental particle physics. The invention features a sophisticated spring-pendulum system that suspends the payload at mK temperatures from an independent reference frame at room temperature, dramatically reducing DDR-induced mechanical distortions to levels below ambient vibrations. This pioneering work in the laboratory was a breakthrough for the operation of cryogenic detectors in state-of-the-art DDRs. These first results have triggered interest from the scientific community and the cryostat industry, which represents an attractive entry market for the innovation. Quantum computing is expected to become a major future market within the next decade. The intellectual property rights of the novel device and its innovative thermal and mechanical concepts are protected by a European patent application. QUANTUM-VIBES will optimize the VDS for robustness and reproducibility and will conduct a dynamic market study to identify potential customers and assess market size. An already established collaboration with an industrial partner enabled the foundation of a spin-off company with the major goal of developing a VDS proof-of-concept that will pave the way for commercialization in an attractive entry market.