The CSIC inaugurates Spain's most advanced facility for fabricating quantum chips and devices in Barcelona

The Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), an organization under the Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities (MICIU), has inaugurated the Quantum Nanofabrication Area of the Micro and Nanofabrication Clean Room at the Institute of Microelectronics of Barcelona (IMB-CNM), the largest research facility of its kind in Spain.

CSIC President Eloísa del Pino; the Catalan Government’s Minister of Research and Universities, Núria Montserrat; the Secretary General for Research at the MICIU, Eva Ortega; and the Government’s Subdelegate in Catalonia, Mari Carmen García-Calvillo, visited this new facility today, which is now the most advanced in the country for the fabrication of nanoscale devices and circuits with applications in quantum technologies and other strategic areas of advanced microelectronics. The event was also attended by Teresa Sanchis, Director General of Research for the Government of Catalonia; Albert Ruiz, Vice Rector for Research at the UAB; Javier Ponce, Director General of the Spanish Society for Technological Transformation (SETT); and Conchi Martínez, Councilor for Innovation for the City of Cerdanyola.

This initiative represents a new step toward strengthening Spanish and European capabilities in the development of these technologies, facilitating the transition from basic research to the development of devices with potential for future industrial applications in fields such as communications, quantum computing, healthcare, energy, and security.

The comprehensive renovation of the facility was funded by more than 6 million euros from the Complementary Plan for Quantum Communications (Plan Complementario de Comunicaciones Cuánticas), through the CSIC’s Interdisciplinary Thematic Platform on Quantum Technologies (QTEP+), and the PERTE Chip (Strategic Project for Economic Recovery and Transformation: Chip, Microelectronics, and Semiconductors), funded by the European Union through the Next Generation EU funds.

The Complementary Plan, launched by the Spanish Government, aims to promote the development and implementation of digital quantum technologies in Spain, build a highly secure communications infrastructure in Spain, and support the industry. It has been co-financed by the MICIU with funds from the European Union’s Next Generation EU program, the CSIC, and the autonomous communities of Madrid, Catalonia, Valencia, the Basque Country, Castile and León, and Galicia.

Specifically, this initiative is part of a plan to renovate the IMB-CNM Clean Room under the PERTE Chip program. In turn, an expansion process will begin in the coming months thanks to the Singulars Institucionals call for proposals, co-funded by the Department of Research and Universities of the Generalitat and the European Union (Catalonia’s ERDF Program 2021–2027). These initiatives represent a strategic improvement, in the short and medium term, of the technological capabilities offered by the Clean Room through the Micronanofabs Unique Science and Technology Infrastructure (ICTS).

_{Picture: first row, from left to right: Mari Carmen García-Calvillo, Government' subdelegate in Catalonia; Eva Ortega, Secretary General for Research at the MICIU; Núria Montserrat, Catalan Government’s Minister of Research and Universities; Eloísa del Pino, CSIC' president; Luis Fonseca, IMB-CNM director. Second row: Mari Carmen Porto, IMB-CNM manager; Neus Sabaté, IMB-CNM Deputy Director; Teresa Sanchis, Director General of Research for the Government of Catalonia; Albert Ruiz, Vice Rector for Research at the UAB; Jose Maria Martell, Science Vicepresident at CSIC; Javier Ponce, Director General of the SETT. Third row: Luis Calvo, CSIC delegate in Catalonia; Angela Fernandez-Curto, Deputy Assistant Director General for ICTS at MICIU; Eva Pérez, Deputy Director of Research for the Generalitat; Juan José García-Ripoll, Coordinator of the PTI QTEP+; Conchi Martínez, Councilor for Innovation for the City of Cerdanyola; Francesc Pérez Murano, Deputy Director of the IMB-CNM.}

The Quantum Nanofabrication Area features state-of-the-art equipment for nanolithography and nanoscale metrology, which will enable the fabrication and characterization of structures, devices, and circuits with extreme levels of precision. Notable among its capabilities is the addition of Spain’s most advanced electron beam lithography system, the EBPG 5150Plus, as well as new equipment capable of inspecting and analyzing devices at the nanoscale throughout all stages of the manufacturing process, such as SEM/EBL microscopes and an AFM. These tools will be available to the national and international scientific and technological community, expanding capabilities for research, development, and advanced prototyping in the field of quantum technologies.

The IMB-CNM thus consolidates a four-decade track record in the design and manufacture of micro- and nanoelectronics, strengthening the CSIC’s position as one of Spain’s leading players in European initiatives related to chips and quantum technologies.

Last April, the CSIC presented the Quantum Science and Technology Strategy, a long-term planning document aimed at consolidating the institution’s leadership in this field and supporting the creation of the new center.

As part of this strategy, the QuARC-CSIC (Quantum Advanced Research Center) for Quantum Science and Technology has been established with the goal of promoting excellence in research, attracting talent, opening new lines of research, strengthening collaboration with other national (including the IMB-CNM) and international groups, fostering technology transfer, and promoting the incubation of companies in this strategic sector.

The QuARC-CSIC will consolidate the institution’s quantum research ecosystem by building on the track record of the Interdisciplinary Thematic Platform on Quantum Technologies (PTI QTEP-CSIC), which brings together 36 research groups from 21 of the organization’s institutes spread across nine autonomous communities.