Inside IBM’s New Quantum Computing Fridges, 180 Times Colder Than Deep Space

To advance the capabilities of quantum computers, scientists need to make the delicate and incredibly power-demanding systems more stable, as well as scale up the processing power. In the next decade, IBM plans to address both of these issues, starting with its new Modular Cryogenic Systems, or “super refridgerators.”

Put together, two of these hefty fridge units measure more than 8 feet tall and 8 feet wide, large enough to host thousands of quantum chips stacked together like LEGOs. 

To understand the technical requirements of quantum computing, you need to first understand what makes it different from standard computing. Classical computing relies on a binary of 1s and 0s. Quantum computing uses qubits (that is, quantum bits) instead, which are neither “on” nor “off” but somewhere in the middle. That simple but fundamental change results in an exponential increase in processing-power demand.

The cryogenic modules IBM just introduced keep qubits just a few thousandths of a degree above absolute zero, in the ultra-cold, isolated conditions that the qubits need to operate in—free from heat, vibrations, radiation, and other interference. The temperature in these boxes is more than 180 times colder than deep space. In fact, it’s so cold that the refrigeration units take around five days to reach the required temperature.