Josephson Microwave Sources Applied to Quantum Information Systems

Published

December 18, 2020

Author(s)

Adam J. Sirois, Manuel C. Castellanos Beltran, Anna E. Fox, Samuel P. Benz, Peter F. Hopkins

Abstract

Quantum computers with thousands or millions of qubits will require a scalable solution for qubit control and readout electronics. Colocating these electronics at millikelvin temperatures has been proposed and demonstrated, but there exist significant challenges with power dissipation, reproducibility, fidelity, and scalability. In this article, we experimentally demonstrate the use of a Josephson arbitrary waveform synthesizer (JAWS) to generate control signals at 4 K and perform spectroscopy of two components of a typical superconducting quantum information system: a linear resonator and a (nonlinear) transmon qubit. By locating the JAWS chip at 4 K and a qubit at 0.1 K, the direct path for quasi-particle poisoning from the JAWS chip to the qubit is broken. We demonstrate the stable, self-calibrated, and reproducible output signal of the JAWS when operated in its quantum locking range, a feature that allows these synthesizers to be replicated and scaled in the cryostat, all with identical on-chip, quantized, outputs. This is a proof-of-concept demonstration to generate signals at 4 K using driven superconducting electronics to control qubits at lower temperatures.

Citation

IEEE Transactions on Quantum Engineering

Volume

1

Pub Type

Journals

Download Paper

DOI Link

Keywords

Quantum computers, qubit control, readout electronics, Josephson arbitrary waveform synthesizer, JAWS, control signals, spectroscopy, linear resonator, nonlinear transmon qubit, quasi-particle poisoning

Citation

Sirois, A. , Castellanos, M. , Fox, A. , Benz, S. and Hopkins, P. (2020), Josephson Microwave Sources Applied to Quantum Information Systems, IEEE Transactions on Quantum Engineering, [online], https://doi.org/10.1109/TQE.2020.3045682 (Accessed October 11, 2025)