Assistant Minority Leader Neguse Cheers Quantum Investment, CU Boulder to Receive $20 Million Award for Transformative Research

Lafayette, CO — Today, House Assistant Minority Leader Joe Neguse announced that the University of Colorado at Boulder has been awarded $19,998,055 in federal funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to construct the National Quantum Nanofab (NQN). The NQN will work to bridge the gap between quantum discoveries happening in laboratories across the country and more practical applications of this transformative technology, including the construction of computers, clocks, navigation tools, optical networks, and more. Under the direction of Professor Scott Diddams, the NQN will accelerate scientific breakthroughs, nanofabrication techniques, and workforce development that will strengthen the United States’ leadership in quantum science, engineering, and technology. 

In October, Colorado was designated a Regional Technology and Innovation Hub (Tech Hub) under the CHIPS and Science Act with a specific focus on quantum. The National Quantum Nanofab and ongoing research in higher education institutions across Colorado and the Rocky Mountain West, further cement the region as the country’s premier hub for discovering, developing, and deploying this technology. 

“Colorado and the Rocky Mountain West continue to lead the quantum revolution. This is in no small part because of the work of talented federal researchers at CU-Boulder and our higher education institutions who are exploring groundbreaking quantum science and technology,” said Congressman Neguse. “I am excited to see this monumental federal investment making its way to CU Boulder, and will continue to champion investments that further support Colorado’s innovation economy.”

“The National Quantum Nanofab facility will significantly enhance CU Boulder's quantum ecosystem by offering access to fabrication facilities that are unparalleled in the nation,” said Massimo Ruzzene, Vice Chancellor for Research & Innovation and Dean of the Institutes at CU Boulder. “This award acknowledges the intellectual leadership of our quantum researchers, and the resulting facility will be transformational in translating quantum discoveries into impactful technologies. Important investments like this are a testament to the dedicated support of our state and federal legislators, including Congressman Neguse, who see the potential that quantum science and technology represents for all of Colorado.” 

Congressman Joe Neguse has repeatedly called on appropriators in Congress to support robust funding for the National Science Foundation (NSF). In April, he penned a letter highlighting the need to provide adequate funding for the NSF to support research and innovation taking place at federally funded science and research centers, including labs at the University of Colorado at Boulder and Colorado State University in Fort Collins. 

Additional information on the NSF award can be found HERE; the project’s abstract is also included below: 

New quantum technologies are poised to transform fields of broad societal impact in computing, sensing, and communications. However, there is a significant gap between fundamental laboratory demonstrations and the fabrication of quantum devices that can be built into instrumentation such as computers, clocks, navigation tools, and optical networks. Simply put, we do not yet know how to build the manufacturable quantum devices of the future, and particularly those that will harness quantum particles like atoms and photons. These quantum building blocks are fundamentally small and new fabrication techniques at the nanoscale will be critical to realize the desired advances in these fields. The National Quantum Nanofab (NQN) at the University of Colorado Boulder will address this shortcoming by developing advanced nanofabrication approaches required to build, control, and connect quantum devices with their supporting infrastructure. In the broader quantum landscape, the focus of NQN will be on the nanoscale fabrication of devices based on atoms and photons with the goal of transitioning quantum discoveries into functioning quantum devices. Importantly, NQN will be an open-access national facility for academic, government and industrial users. It will also be an inclusive hub of education, training, and outreach for diverse populations ranging from K-12 to undergraduate, graduate and community college students. Together, these multiple aspects of NQN will accelerate the scientific breakthroughs, nanofabrication techniques, and workforce development that will strengthen US leadership in quantum science, engineering, and technology.

The team will build and implement a facility and essential nanofabrication instrumentation that will comprise the National Quantum Nanofab (NQN) at the University of Colorado Boulder. The NQN facility will advance the fabrication, process development, and integration challenges encountered with quantum devices constructed from neutral atoms and ions that are interfaced and addressed with optical photons. Such atomic-photonic quantum devices are of significant interest to fundamental and applied researchers and are critical to broad reaching technologies such as quantum computing, atomic clocks, electric and magnetic field sensors, and inertial sensors. NQN will address critical nanofabrication needs including those for chip-integrated narrow linewidth lasers, visible wavelength integrated photonics, integrated modulators and frequency shifters, nonlinear integrated optics, metasurfaces and grating structures, integrated photon detectors, and many more. The fabrication requirements for such quantum devices are unconventional, involving materials beyond silicon and complex heterogeneous processes to produce devices that must integrate with atomic systems in high vacuum, and in some cases, at cryogenic temperatures. With its open-access model for academic, industrial, and government partners, NQN will accelerate co-design and development of atomic-photonic quantum devices, positioning the US to lead in this area. Integral to its mission of advancing quantum devices and hardware, NQN will serve as an inclusive hub of education, training, and outreach for diverse student populations and the workforce essential to US leadership in quantum science and engineering.

Background 

Congressman Neguse, Governor Polis, and Colorado Senators Bennet and Hickenlooper have been advocating for Colorado to lead the nation’s quantum field. In August, Rep. Neguse  joined Colorado’s congressional delegation in a letter to the Department of Commerce highlighting the state’s existing technology ecosystem and encouraging the agency to include Colorado in the Tech Hubs Program. 

Rep. Neguse played a key role in securing the swift enactment of the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) and Science Act, a bill to strengthen U.S. economic and national security, spark semiconductor innovation and manufacturing, remove roadblocks to attracting scientific investment across America, and boost resilience in U.S. supply chains. The Tech Hubs Program was enacted as part of the CHIPS and Science Act and was allocated $10 billion to be awarded to designees over the next five years. 

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