Despite their promising applications, manufacturing and running efficient, eco-friendly quantum computers that can significantly outperform current supercomputers is highly challenging. However, quantum refrigerators could help developing a new generation of more environmentally friendly quantum computers.
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Introduction
Quantum computers are potentially revolutionary for many scientific and engineering fields, performing calculations and solving problems in a fraction of the time taken by even the most powerful current conventional supercomputers. The importance of quantum computing has led to many experts declaring that it is the next frontier in Information Technology that could spur significant technological progress.
However, there are a number of key challenges associated with quantum computing. One of them is that quantum computers require stable qubits that maintain quantum coherence.
Quantum coherence is the ability of the qubits within a quantum system to remain in superposition. This allows the system to exist simultaneously in multiple states rather than the simple 1 or 0 of conventional binary systems, therefore allowing a quantum computer to perform calculations exponentially faster than traditional computers.1
Additionally, quantum computers need to operate with high efficiency at temperatures near absolute zero, requiring huge amounts of energy. A major focus in quantum computing today is designing energy-efficient, eco-friendly quantum systems for the future. Quantum refrigerators represent a significant breakthrough in tackling these critical challenges.
What are Quantum Refrigerators?
Quantum refrigerators help maintain the ultra-cold temperatures necessary for quantum computers to function efficiently and maintain quantum coherence. Whilst they perform well, there is room for improvement.
Scientists from the University of Maryland and Chalmers University of Technology have developed a new kind of quantum refrigeration technology that can be used in conjunction with current systems and provides much lower temperatures (22 millikelvin above absolute zero compared to 50 millikelvins achieved by current systems) for efficient quantum computations.2
The technology requires no external power source, meaning that it can operate autonomously using just environmental heat to power the system. This environmental heat acts as a thermal bath, powering the quantum refrigerator by supplying energy to one superconducting qubit in the system. This process powers the quantum refrigerator, allowing it to transfer heat away from a target qubit and cool it. Superconducting circuits are at the heart of the technology.2
The natural heat difference between the two baths powers the quantum refrigerator, negating the need for external energy sources. This passive operational capability means that the system is both energy efficient and environmentally friendly, and a significant performance boost was reported by the authors of the paper in Nature.
The performance boost of this technology (99.7% compared to the currently reported 98 - 99.92%) has a cumulative effect over multiple calculations, significantly improving the efficiency and computational capabilities of quantum computers.
Challenges in Quantum Computing Energy Efficiency
Computers consume vast amounts of power, with modern exascale supercomputers requiring over 20 megawatts—equivalent to the energy usage of thousands of homes, and therefore have a huge environmental impact.3,4 Quantum computers can perform much faster calculations with a fraction of the power needs of current supercomputers, but some challenges still persist.
For instance, current active cryogenic cooling systems still have high energy demands, highlighting the need for more passive cooling systems to reduce the carbon footprint of quantum computing systems. Additionally, large-scale quantum computing facilities, whilst more energy efficient, still require power for cooling and other critical system components.
More energy-efficient cooling systems are needed to reduce the carbon footprint of quantum computers and large-scale facilities. This is not only vital for advancing quantum computing but also for meeting net-zero goals. Additionally, maintaining stable, low-temperature environments is essential for minimizing errors and preserving quantum coherence—two key challenges in the field.
The Path Toward Eco-Friendly Quantum Computing
Efficiently leveraging quantum properties such as superposition and entanglement will enable energy-efficient and eco-friendly cooling systems such as the technology currently under development by scientists at the University of Maryland and Chalmers University of technology. This will provide a path toward sustainable quantum computing.
Reliable and sustainable cooling systems will contribute to the scalability of quantum computers, and integrating quantum refrigerators with renewable energy sources will enable greener operation, further reducing the environmental footprint of future quantum computing systems.
Improving the sustainability of Information Technology is essential as it is one of the most energy-intensive technological sectors currently, with emerging technologies such as AI placing additional and exponentially increasing power demands on the global energy grid, complicating the net zero transition.
Sustainable technologies like quantum refrigeration may enable eco-friendly, energy-efficient quantum computing, advancing both technology and environmental sustainability. This will have far-reaching applications in fields such as drug discovery, climate modeling, materials science, aerospace, and cryptography.
Further Reading and More Information
- Quantum AI (2025) Understanding Quantum Coherence: The Key to Stable Qubits [online] quantumai.co. Available at: https://quantumai.co/understanding-quantum-coherence-the-key-to-stable-qubits/ (Accessed on 08 February 2025)
- Aamir, M.A. et al. (2025) Thermally driven quantum refrigerator autonomously resets a superconducting qubit Nature Physics [online] nature.com. Available at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41567-024-02708-5 (Accessed on 08 February 2025)
- Rrapaj, E et al. (2024) Power Consumption Trends in Supercomputers: A Study of NERSC's Cori and Perlmutter Machines [online] IEEEXplore. Available at: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10528943 (Accessed on 08 February 2025)
- Inside HPC (2023) The Energy Advantage of Quantum Computers [online] Available at: https://insidehpc.com/2023/06/the-energy-advantage-of-quantum-computers/ (Accessed on 08 February 2025)
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