Facilities

Silicon Graphics Altix 3700 supercomputer

The machine is a Silicon Graphics Altix 3700 supercomputer with thirty-two 1.5 GHz Itanium 2 processors, capable of performing approximately 200 billion floating-point operations per second. The machine has 64 gigabytes of RAM shared across all CPUs, and runs the SUSE Linux operating system. If you would like to access QCV's SGI supercomputer please contact us to arrange an account.

MagiQ QPN™ Security Gateway Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) System

MagiQ QPN™ Security Gateway System is the first commercial implementation of quantum cryptography. It allows data to be securely transmitted using quantum communication technology. The MagiQ QPN system at QCV is open to industry and government agencies to test and realize this revolutionary method of cryptography.

For further details about the MagiQ QKD system please click here.

Photonics Development Laboratory

Equipment in this laboratory is used to integrate the single photon source to other photonic devices and ultimately into existing quatum communications equipment. Included is a 4 Megapixel, 14 bit Apogee CCD camera with a > 74dB dynamic range, coupled to a Nikon microscope, which is capable of reflection and transmission imaging. This equipment is used to perform quality control on the fibre containing the diamond crystals. The laboratory also contains multiple optical breadboards with an extensive range of photonic characterisation hardware, including an optical fibre fusion splicer, fibre puller, power meters, precision translation stages and a tunable laser source.

Quantum Characterisation Laboratory

Single photon sources must be characterised to establish that one and only one photon is being emitted per pulse. This laboratory at the School of Physics (The University of Melbourne) is setup to detect fluorescence from individual colour centres in diamond using a scanning confocal optical microscope. The photon statistics are measured using a standard Hanbury Brown & Twiss (HBT) coincidence setup consisting of two Silicon Avalanche Photodiodes and PicoQuant autocorrelation hardware. This equipment is supplemented with a range of laser diodes at 532 and 685 nm together with specific optical hardware, such as piezo-controlled nano-precision translation stages and custom lenses and filters.

Diamond Fabrication Laboratory

The core piece of equipment which is used for fabrication of diamond is a fully automated Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) system. Using the CVD technique, diamond can be synthesised at temperatures and pressures well below its natural growth conditions.

Also included in this laboratory is a range of equipment for sample preparation and modification such as ultrasonic and chemical baths and customized optical fibre processing equipment. Sample post-processing equipment includes a tube furnace with a temperature range between room temperature and 1200 °C.