Bright SPARQ(s) Attend Pioneering Project Meeting
Bright SPARQ(s) Attend Pioneering Project Meeting
From left to right: Mark Mills, Gianfranco Aresta, Aikaterini Tzanetou, Julian Rickert, Steven Clowes, Ella Schneider and Kristian Stockbridge.
In April we attended the second annual meeting of the SPARQ(s) project, marking the halfway point of our 2 year collaborative journey we are on with the University of Surrey, Fraunhofer Institute IAF, and XeedQ.
Read on to find out about the SPARQ(s) project and our visit to Fraunhofer IAF
The SPARQ(s) project is a collaborative effort to develop, test and characterise a novel dual source system to be used with our Q-One single ion implantation instrument that could revolutionise the world of quantum.
Ionoptika’s role in the SPARQ(s) project is centred around the Q-One, our state-of-the-art focused ion beam platform and the single ion implantation and detection capabilities that it offers. Because we are able to implant a single ion into various substrates, such as diamond, the Q-one is considered to be a promising tool for creating colour centres, which have various applications including advanced microscopes and biosensing.
The project aims to broaden the scope of research that can be undertaken by increasing the range of elements that the system can implant. Currently only one type of ion beam system may be used at a time, but with the SPARQ(s) project we are developing a Metal and Gas Ion Column (working title: MaGIC), that will be uniquely capable of switching between the use of liquid metal and gas ion sources, the first of its kind.
Our team of project engineers Dr. Gianfranco Aresta, Dr. Kristian Stockbridge and Mark Mills travelled to Germany to visit the Fraunhofer Institute IAF, and meet with all of the partners involved in this project.
There was a lot packed into the 2 day visit, and it was exciting to see the progression of our project since the very first meeting.
We were asked to give an open talk to the scientists at IAF, and so Kristian gave a talk on single ion implantation technologies. One of our partners from the University of Surrey, Dr. Ella Schneider, also gave a talk on single ion implantation at the Surrey Ion Beam Centre. It was a delight to see such high interest in the open talks and experience the buzz surrounding this project and the potential it has.
During the afternoon of the first day, Gianfranco gave an update on Ionoptika’s work on the development of the Metal and Gas Ion Column (MaGIC). There was a lot of exciting discussion about the data presented from different areas of the project, as well as plans for the future.
The team enjoyed an entertaining group dinner in the evening, and were ready bright and early for day 2 of the visit!
The day began with a guided tour of the Fraunhofer Institute, getting an in-depth look at their facilities. The team especially enjoyed suiting up for the tour of the clean room, touring the various labs and seeing the diamond growth.
All too quickly our visit came to an end, but it was a pleasure sharing our side of the project and getting a glimpse of all the different parts of SPARQ(s) coming together.
It’s been an amazing year on this journey with our team of partners, and we are already looking forward to what the next year will hold for SPARQ(s), and the future beyond our projects completion. Watch this space!
