The Silent Revolution Transforming Tomorrow’s Electronics: Hiqute Diamonds
HiQute Diamond’s synthetic diamonds promise to radically transform power electronics and quantum computing in the next decade. With exceptional resilience and unique properties, these technological gems could revolutionize our everyday devices, electric vehicles, and even navigation systems, while establishing Europe as a leader in advanced quantum technologies.
Our technology is mature, the quantum computing market is booming, it's time to accelerate
From Laboratory to Industry: Birth of a Technological Gem
Technofounders took a decisive step in July 2024 by recruiting Florent Alzetto as CEO of HiQute Diamond. This quantum physics specialist, formerly with Saint-Gobain and Boston Consulting Group, joined Riadh Issaoui, CTO and passionate researcher, at the Sorbonne Paris-Nord University campus in Villetaneuse.
“I am still amazed by this material” says Riadh Issaoui, “it will revolutionize many aspects of our daily lives in the coming years.“
This deeptech startup didn’t emerge by chance. It draws on the internationally recognized expertise of the Laboratory of Sciences of Processes and Materials (LSPM), a pioneer in diamond synthesis through chemical vapor deposition (CVD) since the 1990s. This laboratory developed the first diamonds for quantum technologies as early as 2007, supplying several hundred wafers to various academic and private partners since then.
Cutting-Edge Technology with Endless Applications
Unlike synthetic diamonds intended for jewelry, which mimic natural processes under extreme pressure and heat, HiQute Diamond uses a radically different approach. The CVD technique places a diamond “seed” in a low-pressure chamber with methane. A microwave generator vaporizes CH₄ at very high temperatures, creating a plasma that precipitates carbon atoms in successive layers onto the seed.
The result? An ultra-pure diamond, with the surface area of a fingernail and the thickness of a hair, but with exceptional properties.
What particularly distinguishes HiQute Diamond from its rare competitors is its mastery of diamond “doping.” By adding boron to the process, the company creates a “blue” diamond particularly suited for power electronics, while the “white” diamond targets the quantum sensor market.
Power Electronics Reinvented
Synthetic diamond far outperforms traditional materials like silicon or copper. Infinitely more resistant, it tolerates power up to 10,000 volts and withstands temperatures of 250 degrees without degradation.
These characteristics promise to radically transform power electronics, with major implications for:
- Mobile devices (smartphones, laptops)
- Electric vehicles (increased range, faster charging)
- Energy infrastructure (more efficient converters)
A Major Breakthrough for Quantum Computing
Paradoxically, it's a less mature and less known technology that's driving us to accelerate today: quantum computing
Synthetic diamond solves one of the major challenges in quantum computing: controlling the superposition states of the qubit, this fundamental unit that can take multiple values simultaneously.
In the medium term, this innovation could give rise to:
- Quantum sensors improving medical diagnostics
- Precise navigation systems accurate to the meter, functioning without GPS thanks to ultra-precise detection of the Earth’s magnetic field
- More stable and powerful quantum computers
A Bright Future for French Innovation
HiQute Diamond is preparing to move into its own facilities in the Paris region and plans to strengthen its technical and commercial team. Born from the collaboration between visionary researchers (Riadh Issaoui, Fabien Bénédic, Jocelyn Achard, Ovidiu Brinza, and Alexandre Tallaire) and venture builder Technofounders, this company aims to concretely contribute to the emergence of an industry of excellence in quantum sensors at the European level.
“We feel like we’re at the beginning of a long and beautiful technological journey” enthuse the two leaders. And as the original article so aptly concludes: even when synthetic, diamonds are forever, so the adventure promises to last…
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