Jorge Pérez, a scientist at the CSIC at INMA (a joint CSIC-UNIZAR institute), has been awarded a European Marie Skłodowska-Curie project to “miniaturise” cryogenic circulators
The aim is to take another step towards making quantum technology more compact, efficient and easier to deploy outside the laboratory
Zaragoza, 3rd Feb. 2026. Quantum computing is set to revolutionise fields such as science, industry and digital security, but it still faces a major challenge: how to move from experimental systems with few qubits to truly powerful and scalable machines that are also small enough to be used outside laboratories or large data centres. One of the scientists at the Aragon Nanoscience and Materials Institute (INMA), a joint institute of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the University of Zaragoza, has already begun working on this at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (Switzerland).
Jorge Pérez, a CSIC researcher at INMA, is leading a project funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions. Specifically, the Q-WAVE project (2026–2028) is funded with €389,156.16 and will last for three years (from January 2026 to December 2028), during which time Jorge Pérez will lead this line of research from Switzerland (where he has already moved) and will also spend two months at the University of Vienna.
From the first calculators to the quantum future
Today, quantum computers operate with a very limited number of qubits (a qubit, or quantum bit, is the basic unit of information in a quantum computer, just as a bit is in a classical computer). The leap needed is comparable to that between the first electronic calculators and today’s smartphones. To achieve this, it is not enough to add more qubits: the basic components that control them and allow their information to be read must be redesigned.
One of these key components is the cryogenic circulator, a device essential for the operation of superconducting qubits, but which is currently large, expensive and difficult to integrate. Simply put, a cryogenic circulator is an electronic component that directs signals in a single direction, like a roundabout for waves inside a quantum computer. It is essential for reading information from qubits, protecting them from noise (which could destroy their quantum state) and preventing signals from ‘bouncing’ and spoiling the calculation.
The Q-WAVE project seeks to transform these bulky circulators into flat (2D), miniaturised devices that are compatible with chip manufacturing. This would allow them to be integrated directly alongside quantum processors, reducing size, costs and resource consumption.
Although the project is based on advanced physics concepts, its objective is very specific: to make quantum technology more compact, efficient and easier to deploy outside the laboratory.
Thanks to this miniaturisation, Q-WAVE will help make quantum systems easier to scale and more accessible, laying the foundations for quantum computing to move beyond the experimental environment and become part of real-world applications in the future.
Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence
The Aragon Nanoscience and Materials Institute (INMA) was the first in our Autonomous Community to obtain Severo Ochoa accreditation of excellence, awarded by the State Research Agency. This recognition entails funding of 4.5 million euros and the provision of five pre-doctoral contracts for the period 2024-2028.
INMA is a joint institute of the CSIC and the University of Zaragoza. With around 300 members, it has more than 40 European projects underway and an annual average of 300 publications and €7 million obtained in competitive public programmes. It also works in collaboration with industry, earning around €1 million per year from contracts and royalties.
03-02-2026
