Dublin-based start-up Equal1 recently announced a partnership with Bell to establish a quantum computing research center at University College Dublin (UCD). This exciting collaboration aims to advance the development and understanding of quantum computing technology.
What Is Bell-1?
Spectra Quantum Technologies has introduced Bell‑1, the world’s first rack-mounted silicon quantum computer servers, destined for use in high-performance computing (HPC) systems, a spin-out from University College Dublin (UCD) Equal1.
Bell-1 is contained in a standard 19-inch data center rack and is completely self-contained, including a built-in cryocooler, and operates at 0.3 K. It requires regular data center power (110-220 V, 1,600 W or so).
The Importance
Bell-1 represents a quantum transition between the prototypes and enterprise‑class usage of Quantum Computing 2.0, which comes to market with a smooth fit into current data centers with no custom hardware required and no inordinate expense to deploy.
It has a silicon-spin-qubit (6 qubits in this generation) architecture, which fits into standard racks and offers applications in the domains of AI, finance, pharmaceuticals, materials science, etc.
Technical Specs in a Nutshell
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Qubits | 6 Silicon-spin qubits (UnityQ processor) |
| Cooling | Closed cycle cryocooler, 0.3 K operation, no dilution refrigerator required |
| Power | â patients’ searĂ eMI multi-action On standard 110 220 V single-phase power |
| Form Factor | Standard server rack ( 200 kg ) – GPU server footprint |
| Infrastructure | No special room requirement for in-built cryogenics |
Enterprise and Driving Research Impact
Bell-1 removes deployment obstacles and provides plug-and-play quantum capabilities to businesses and researchers. It promotes hands-on work with quantum phase estimation, error correction, and AI/HPC hybrid workflows, bypassing time-consuming construction of dedicated facilities.
The Roadmap: UnityQ & Beyond by Equal1
Equal1 is developing the next generations that have higher scalability based on UnityQ Quantum System-on-Chip (QSoC) architectures. They plan that by 2030, they expect to migrate their current 6 qubits based on Bell-1 to millions of physical qubits, thousands of logical qubits, with a standard semiconductor manufacturing process.
Irish Quantum Leadership
Equal1 is the first quantum spin-out of UCD and has ~45 employees in Ireland, the US and Canada, Romania, and the Netherlands. They began working with CeADAR on the national AI-quantum testbed, which will strengthen Ireland’s place in next-gen tech.
