How Quantum Sensing Will Reshape Industries

The first wave of quantum technology, often referred to as Quantum 1.0, gave rise to discoveries that have become so embedded in modern life that we take them for granted: semiconductors, lasers and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), to name just a few. This first wave of quantum technologies harnessed the group behavior of particles like electrons and photons, unlocking a new age of applied innovation.

Now, Quantum 2.0 is on the way, triggered by our increased understanding of quantum mechanics. Instead of harnessing the ensemble behavior of particles, researchers can now manipulate individual particles of matter. The results are entirely new classes of technology, including quantum sensors so sensitive they can detect the faintest changes in time, gravity and electromagnetic fields.

“The quantum state of a particle is highly sensitive to the slightest changes in its environment,” says Michael Eggleston, Data and Devices Group Leader at Nokia Bell Labs. “That is precisely why quantum particles make such exceptional detection devices.”

Quantum sensing is a remarkable technology that will enable humanity to measure what was previously invisible—giving us an unprecedented understanding of our planet, our networks and even our bodies.

Quantum 1.0 has already revolutionized health care, and quantum processes are used in MRI scanning, surgeries, drug design and more. But Quantum 2.0 sensing technology can go much further: It can make room-sized diagnostic devices portable, and detect biological phenomena with far greater sensitivity and spatial resolution.

“A quantum electromagnetic field sensor could map complex electrical impulses in the human heart or detect the firing of individual neurons in the human brain,” Eggleston says. “This could lead to big leaps forward in our understanding and treatment of cardiovascular and neurological diseases.”

Scientists are already researching how quantum electromagnetic sensors can monitor human biological processes. For instance, Yeshpal Singh, Professor of Quantum Science and Innovation at the University of Birmingham, is using this technology to learn more about dementia.

“The dementia patient wears a helmet embedded with small magnetic sensors, miniaturized using quantum technology—and it will keep collecting data from their brain while they go about their day, without medical supervision,” he explains.

The diagnostic uses of quantum sensing go beyond electromagnetic sensing. For example, quantum dots—semiconductor nanoparticles—are being utilized for early-stage cancer detection. First synthesized at Nokia Bell Labs in the 1980s for nanotechnology applications, quantum dots are now being injected into patients with an attached detection molecule that binds to and highlights cancer biomarkers. This allows doctors to find tumors too small to detect by traditional means.

The hope is that Quantum 2.0 sensing technology will improve multiple aspects of medicine and boost early diagnosis, improve health outcomes for patients and cut healthcare costs.

Quantum sensing can also help monitor the state of the planet. For instance, quantum gravity sensors can detect miniscule differences in Earth’s gravitational field, enabling scientists to more accurately map activity underground.

Mapping gravitational shifts using quantum sensing to detect subterranean features, water reservoirs and mineral deposits could also help governments and industries carry out resource exploration more efficiently.

Other quantum sensing techniques could be used to monitor the health of natural resources. For example, encasing nanodiamonds in moving water droplets creates quantum sensors sensitive enough to detect metallic contaminants in water, which would better identify toxins in water supplies.

Quantum sensing can play a role in mitigating the typical wear and tear that affects all manmade infrastructure, which can be exacerbated by the increased frequency of extreme weather events.

Quantum sensors could detect microcavities and corrosion in bridges and identify structural weaknesses before they become catastrophic. Everything that runs off electricity—from a wind turbine to a rail network—emits an electromagnetic field. By monitoring perturbations in these fields, electromagnetic sensors could detect mechanical failures before they happen.

Communications is another area that quantum sensing has the potential to improve. Precision timing is an important component of communication networks, and as data volume and network demand continue to increase, more accurate, lower-cost quantum clocks will allow higher data rates over optical and wireless networks.

Quantum sensing can also play a key role in minimizing the energy needs of communication networks. Data demand is growing by a factor of 10 every 10 years, which is driving up power consumption. By using quantum sensors to count individual particles of light, future networks could encode more information into a single photon traveling over fiber-optic connections, which could substantially reduce the energy costs necessary to transmit high volumes of data.

Finally, quantum sensing can help us manage one of the most limited resources in wireless networks: spectrum bandwidth. “A major challenge in all wireless communication systems is spectrum allocation,” Eggleston says. “With only so many frequencies to transmit on, it comes down to who gets to use them. The more people that share them, the less bandwidth everyone gets.” The new class of quantum radio-frequency sensors can scan the spectrum to detect signals and available bandwidth much more efficiently than traditional technologies.

From efficient data delivery to early cancer diagnoses, the many applications of quantum sensing will be far-reaching and transformative, unlocking possibilities across industries. Quantum 2.0 represents a chance to improve the health of humanity, the planet and the infrastructure around us by helping us to better know our world.

“It all comes down to the fact that if we can’t sense and understand the world, then it’s really hard to take action and do things better,” says Eggleston.