A Japanese jewelry company, working with academic researchers, has developed a new manufacturing method to create 2-inch (five centimeter) diamond wafers that could be used in future quantum computers.
Adamant Namiki Precision Jewelry collaborated with Saga University in Kyushu to create new “Kenzan Diamonds” that are pure enough to be used in quantum computing. While diamond sheets of the required purity exist, they were too small to be used in quantum computing applications until now, as they were no larger than 4mm square. According to a press release by
Adamant Namiki, attempts to create 2-inch diamond sheets had failed due to higher levels of nitrogen impurities. The Japanese jewelery firm has developed a new technique that makes it possible to develop large diamond sheets with fewer impurities.
Adamant Namiki and Saga University’s new technique grows diamond sheets on a sapphire substrate covered with an iridium film, using the “step flow growth” principle, instead of using diamond microneedle seeding. The substrates and stepped structure used by this new technique allow diamonds to be grown using high temperatures and pressure without any stress cracking during cooling, while minimizing nitrogen absorption.
While conventional computers use processors made of silicon chips, researchers are experimenting with diamonds instead of silicon, as it is the hardest material in the world and also a good conductor of heat. Adamant Namiki’s Kenzan Diamonds look like they could be used for quantum storage applications thanks to their size and low nitrogen nature. Using one of the company’s new diamond platters for quantum storage, close to a billion Blu-Ray discs’ worth of data can be stored in an incredibly small 2-inch form.
While Adamant Namiki has announced plans to make Kenzan Diamond sheets commercially available next year, the firm says it is already working on developing 4-inch diamond sheets that can hold even more data.
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