Automating Atomic Assembly: Enabling the Quantum Revolution
Despite their size, atomically thin devices are currently assembled by hand, creating a significant bottleneck in their production. The PQA provided funding to Prof. Brian Gerardot and his team at Heriot-Watt University to advance their technology for automating atomic assembly – an essential step toward scaling up the production of quantum devices worldwide. The team is now progressing towards spinning out a company, Atomic Architects.
Intertangle: Entanglement-Enabled Security for Data Centres
Entanglement, a quantum phenomenon, can be used to ensure secure communications in data centres of the future. The PQA provided funding to Dr Natalia Herrera Valencia and her team at Heriot-Watt University to create a working prototype that could be tested in a real data centre – an essential step toward developing a production-ready device. The team is now progressing towards spinning out a company, Intertangle.
Supporting Market Intelligence
All spin-outs need to understand the market, their customers, and customer needs. The PQA provided funding to Dr Natalia Herrera Valencia and Rachel Connolly through its Quick Response Fund to gather market intelligence at Photonics West 2025.
Toxic Books: Quick, Low-Cost Detection
Toxic levels of arsenic were used in the bindings of green-coloured 19th Century books. The PQA provided funding to Dr Graham Bruce at the University of St Andrews to create a low-cost prototype and use it to scan books in key collections in Scotland, enabling safe storage and handling.