Article
Building prosperity by unleashing the power of quantum computing
Stephanie Simmons — Founder and Chief Quantum Officer, Photonic Inc.
Institution(s)
Simon Fraser University
Province(s)
British Columbia
Commercializing quantum computing
Quantum computing has the potential to revolutionize drug discovery, the energy sector, cyber security and more because it can handle certain types of problems that are not possible with conventional computers.
While we’ve had versions of quantum computers for more than a decade, for them to reach their potential, they need to achieve a certain scale and level of functionality. Stephanie Simmons, who leads the Silicon Quantum Technology lab at Simon Fraser University (SFU), started her company, Photonic Inc., to deliver on that need.
To make the jump to useful quantum computers, I understood I’d need to work within the private sector. Canada has great training programs and opportunities for financial support for researchers who want to commercialize their work.
Taking advantage of silicon to find success
Simmons became interested in quantum technology in her teens and studied in Canada and abroad, but returned to Vancouver, B.C., to start Photonic. The company is taking a novel approach that leverages the benefits of silicon and telecom-network compatibility of photons to build a scalable, commercially relevant quantum computing platform.
Silicon fabrication is well known and Photonic’s approach doesn’t require the same extreme temperatures as some other quantum computing materials to function — both of which are advantageous in developing the technology for commercial use.
Building prosperity for Canada
- Partnership with Microsoft to accelerate the advancement of quantum technologies
- 140+ global employees
- Offices in Vancouver, the United States and the United Kingdom
- US$140 million total in funding secured
- Closed a US$100 million funding round in fall 2023 — the raise was the second largest private investment in quantum technologies globally in 2023, as reported by McKinsey in April 2024
- Simmons is co-chair of Canada’s National Quantum Strategy Advisory Board and was listed in Maclean’s magazine’s The Power List 2024: Tech and in Caldwell’s top 40 under 40 in 2020
Research equipment led to Canadian innovation
Simmons’ team at SFU benefited from CFI-funded cleanroom facilities and laboratory equipment to build and test the initial silicon chips used in the system. The research infrastructure also allowed them to look at how particles that are carefully implanted in silicon can be used to process information and be linked with optical networks to improve how we transfer information securely over long distances.
Simmons remembers when her lab achieved the first measurement of the silicon spins, a key component of the technology, using a state-of-the-art microscope designed by a master’s student. Over the course of a weekend, data came in that turned theory to reality, providing evidence for the viability of silicon-based quantum computing.
Photonic continues to make great progress, announcing in spring 2024 that it performed a quantum sequence across chips in separate modules, which demonstrated a credible proof-of-concept for their distributed quantum computing platform. This development showed the potential for commercial systems capable of scaling, bringing the company one step closer to meeting its ultimate goal.