Kevin Roccapriore is the president and cofounder of AtomQ, Inc. AtomQ was started through his work as an R&D associate with collaboration from the user program at ORNL in the data nanoanalytics group in the Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, a DOE user facility. His research has focused on combining the scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) with both machine intelligence and custom hardware control to automate, understand, and precisely control the interaction of the electron beam with matter at the atomic scale with a focus on tuning optical properties. Prior to his professional career, he received his bachelor’s in food science from the University of Florida in 2011, as well as a master’s (2014) and doctorate (2018) in physics from the University of North Texas. Through his professional experience, he has had both fruitful academic and industry collaborations, enabling successful use of STEM to identify and target single atoms in real time and manipulate matter literally atom by atom, forming the basis for AtomQ’s technology.
Represented Organization
AtomQ
Key Innovation
AtomQ is developing a scalable atomic quantum computer that leverages large numbers of optically active quantum defects, known as color centers, as qubits. Using scanning transmission electron microscopy, the platform can generate these color centers at the single-atom level with atomic precision and within milliseconds. This rapid and precise qubit creation enables the design, construction, and integration of much larger qubit arrays within a single, compact device.
The approach has the potential to achieve large-scale fabrication of atomically designed quantum devices, analogous to the chip-scale fabrication used in silicon transistors. By addressing scalability, AtomQ’s technology aims to overcome one of the key limitations in current quantum computing architectures, which are restricted to hundreds or low thousands of qubits.
Target Market
Quantum computing has transformative potential in sectors that require solving complex, currently intractable problems. AtomQ’s technology targets industries such as energy, pharmaceutical research, finance, and cryptography, where large-scale quantum computers could provide breakthroughs in simulation, optimization, and secure computation.
Current quantum systems are limited to around 1,000 qubits, far below the estimated 1 million qubits needed for practical applications. AtomQ’s scalable atomic quantum computer offers a pathway to meet this demand, providing a compact, precise, and high-throughput solution for enterprises, research institutions, and technology developers seeking to harness the full potential of quantum computing.
ORNL Principal Investigator
- Travis Humble - Director, Quantum Science Center, Computing and Computational Sciences Directorate
- Andrew Lupini - Group Leader, Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope, Physical Sciences Directorate