PsiQuantum has been awarded a $10.8 million contract by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to supply quantum photonic chips, component software, and optical materials. The contract supports AFRL’s development of quantum circuits by providing access to PsiQuantum’s chip manufacturing infrastructure, including the integration of high-performance Barium Titanate (BTO) electro-optic phase shifters into AFRL-designed optical systems. The collaboration builds on an existing partnership established in 2022 and leverages PsiQuantum’s circuit tapeout process and semiconductor manufacturing with GlobalFoundries.
Under the agreement, PsiQuantum will deliver completed quantum chips incorporating AFRL’s circuit designs alongside proprietary optical components and switching materials. These chips will be fabricated using PsiQuantum’s Omega quantum photonic platform, which is produced at GlobalFoundries’ 300mm Fab 8 facility in New York. AFRL will test and evaluate the chips for defense-relevant quantum applications. The contract is structured as a firm-fixed-price award, funded through Fiscal Year 2025 research and development allocations, with completion expected by May 2027.
The initiative involves multiple sites across Palo Alto, Malta, and Albany, New York, and was competitively awarded following an open Broad Agency Announcement. The project contributes to the broader U.S. effort to advance photonic quantum computing and scale fault-tolerant architectures through public-private collaboration.
Read the full announcement from PsiQuantum here.
April 15, 2025
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