A startup that plans to build a 40,000-kilometer quantum communication network raises $75 million in Series A funding

On March 31, Swiss quantum technology company Terra Quantum AG announced that it has increased its Series A funding to $75 million, whose research provides a breakthrough solution to the long-term challenge of efficient power devices for nanoelectronics.

Terra Quantum says it is the first company to reveal the underlying mechanism of ferroelectric negative capacitance, and also shares how it actually does it. This is a huge milestone in hardware design, laying the foundation for the next generation of technology.

Terra Quantum's Series A round is one of the largest in the quantum technology space, and the extension of the round brings the total raised to $75 million. The funding will be used to strengthen Terra Quantum's services in data encryption and cybersecurity.

In May last year, according to the British "Daily Telegraph" report, Terra Quantum announced a grand plan of 40,000 kilometers. The company claims to have made a major breakthrough in encryption, developing a system that could theoretically send uncrackable messages around the world. Based on quantum key distribution, the company has developed a new method of securely transmitting data over fiber-optic cables, which it says can travel up to 40,000 kilometers.

The company is exploring the extraordinary physics of ferroelectricity, unlocking enormous potential for next-generation hardware technologies. Considered a fundamental law of electricity -- as fundamental as the law of gravitation -- the greater the charge on a conductor, the greater the electric field created around the conductor. Researchers at Terra Quantum have shown how the opposite effect can be achieved when ferroelectric materials are used in specific ways. Terra Quantum takes advantage of a phenomenon known as "negative capacitance" to implement a specific design on one of the most widely used electronic devices, field-effect transistors. This breakthrough contributes to further miniaturization of electronic products. In the ninth issue of Nature Partner Journal: Computational materials, Terra Quantum researchers describe the practical design of negative capacitance field effect transistors based on ferroelectric nanodots.

Terra Quantum says its breakthrough in ferroelectric physics has had countless positive impacts, as it advances future electronics, especially the long-sought-after terahertz frequencies. In health and safety, advanced terahertz spectroscopy enabled by Terra Quantum ferroelectric devices will provide unprecedented diagnostic tools such as non-invasive techniques for early detection of cancer, ex vivo spectroscopy and tissue imaging (biopsy), preventive healthcare and blood tests, osteoarthritis, arthritis diagnosis and many other diagnoses.

The advantage of terahertz-based medical diagnostics is that the energy of terahertz photons is not sufficient to break chemical bonds or ionize biomolecules. Therefore, they are harmless and less invasive to living organisms, especially compared to high-energy photons such as x-rays and ultraviolet light. In the field of advanced micro- or nano-scale communications, on-chip terahertz communication elements can provide intra-chip/inter-chip wireless interconnection, enabling more compact, efficient designs, new architectures, and 6G mobile communications.

Markus Pflitsch, founder and CEO of Terra Quantum said: "Our Series A funding and significant breakthrough in negative capacitance further demonstrate our strong trajectory and commitment to leading the global quantum revolution. We are delighted to have additional investors participating. Come in and share our vision, and I'm very proud that the Terra Quantum team has shown how we've made it happen. Terra Quantum is innovating in software and hardware, laying the groundwork for the quantum and nanodevices that will shape the future of our society Fundamentals. The applications of our research are endless, and we can't wait to take the next steps to realize them."

       Terra Quantum founder and CEO, Markus Pflitsch

The key to the development of quantum computers and quantum communication is to overcome the bottleneck of the traditional binary von Neumann architecture. This must be achieved by exploiting the characteristics of neuroscientific principles of biological brains. Based on the discovery of ferroelectric logic units capable of operating within a multi-bit logic framework, in contrast to the binary logic of standard computational units, Terra Quantum will implement neuromorphic spiking neural networks.

A future core element in this direction is a representation of the quantum neural principles of the human brain, with incredible efficiency derived from the spontaneous formation of synchronised quantum pulses that make up qubits. These time pulses provide the quantum jump known as "enlightenment," which is the main function of the human brain that distinguishes it from a computer. Terra Quantum will leverage the neuromorphic multi-bit logic of ferroelectric cells as a model for qubits, provide a hybrid neuromorphic NISQ environment for qubits, and reveal the topology that enables the formation of quantum pulses in qubits. This will make emerging technologies as efficient as the human brain.

Valerii Vinokur, CTO of Terra Quantum, said: "Our research is another giant leap towards the next generation of technology. Harnessing negative capacitance and utilizing it in electronic circuits paves the way for a new generation of transistors and opto-resonators. These are the foundation of critical technologies, such as the computer chips that power everything from automobiles to medical devices. The team at Terra Quantum has worked tirelessly to achieve this goal, a testament to our initiative as technology pioneers and thought leaders in the quantum field.”

About Terra Quantum

Terra Quantum, a leading Swiss-based quantum technology company, is a "quantum-as-a-service" company with three core areas. The first is the Quantum Algorithm Service, where a large library of algorithms is available to clients, such as quantum-based optimization and quantum-based neural networks, such as pattern recognition that can be used for general portfolio optimization, including financial portfolios. Terra Quantum also develops new algorithms for clients, or adapts existing algorithms to clients' specific needs. The second is quantum computing as a service, providing customers with access to high-performance logic qubits to give them a true quantum advantage today. The third is Quantum Security Services, which provides quantum security globally through its unique quantum-secure communication and QKD solutions.

Link:

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220331005472/en/