Writing in the journal Quantum Science and Technology, they present a new process for creating superconducting interconnects, which are compatible with existing superconducting qubit technology.

The race to develop the first large-scale error-corrected quantum computer is extremely competitive, and the process itself is complex. Whereas classical computers encode data into binary digits (bits) that exist in one of two states, a quantum computer stores information in quantum bits (qubits) that may be entangled with each other and placed in a superposition of both states simultaneously.

The catch is that quantum states are extremely fragile, and any undesired interaction with the surrounding environment may destroy this quantum information. One of the biggest challenges in the creation of a large-scale quantum computer is how to physically scale up the number of qubits, while still connecting control signals to them and preserving these quantum states.