Inside the lab driving the quantum revolution in the Netherlands

Tech

Published: 07 Dec. 2023, 07:00

Inside the lab driving the quantum revolution in the Netherlands

A close-up image of a quantum computer [PIM TOP FOR QUTECH]

THE NETHERLANDS — Inside a cramped lab with a bundle of cables crisscrossing the walls and ceilings, whirring sounds are generated from what seems like large trash barrels at QuTech in Delft of the Netherlands in November.

Such a high-tech scene is not something that easily comes to mind when thinking of the Netherlands, a European country more commonly known for its country-like features like tulips and windmills.

However, this lab at QuTech is the epitome of the country's technological prowess.

Those barrels in the labs were fridges where quantum computers were situated to be cooled down. The pulsing sounds were from dropping the quantum computer's heat to approximately 10 millikelvins, which roughly translates to minus 273 degrees. The outer space temperature is minus 269 degrees.

Lowering the temperature to this drastic level is the only way to control quantum bits that are extremely vulnerable to light and temperature.

"This is where all the nasty works get done to make the big dreams in the quantum world come true in the future," said Pablo Cova Farina, a Ph.D. student at QuTech who showed the Korea JoongAng Daily around the lab on Nov. 7.

QuTech is a research institute for quantum computing and quantum internet established in partnership between the Delft University of Technology and the Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research (TNO) in 2014 in the western Dutch city of Delft.

Comprising of 300 members, QuTech is not large in size but is one of the pioneering institutions in the world for quantum technology, an up-and-coming scientific field where global power players like the United States and China are fiercely competing. This Dutch institution ranks fifth place in terms of number of theses generated from this area.

Its competitiveness has been proven by forming partnerships with global tech giants like Intel, Microsoft and Fujitsu to collaborate on the technology.

"The quantum technology is still very much dependent on a scientific push," explained Kees Eijkel, a business development director at QuTech, on how the institution got such a leading position in the quantum field.

"Delft University has already had 30 years of extreme focus on quality in this field. We've attracted the best people around the world," he said, adding that recruiting both researchers and engineers, a rare approach, was one of its strategies to take the leadership in both the industry and the academic scenes for the quantum.

Chip powerhouse

Michel Korenhof, principal designer at NXP explains an automotive processor at its headquarters in Eindhoven on Nov. 8. [JIN EUN-SOO]

The Netherlands is a small country one-third the size of Korea and is squeezed between powerful nations like France and Germany.

But its economic competitiveness is nothing less than monumental.

Its GDP per capital ranked 10th in the world last year with 53,000 euros ($57,000). Korea was in 29th with $32,000.

It was also named the fifth most competitive economy in the world this year by IMD's World Competitiveness Ranking while Korea was 28th out of 64 countries.

That explains how the Netherlands emerged as a chip powerhouse with companies like ASML and NXP.

ASML is widely known for its manufacturing of extremely valuable lithography machines which are essential in making advanced chips.

The lesser known NXP, however, is a formidable player too, taking the top spot in the automotive processor market.

During Covid-19, when there was a chip shortage across the board, automakers like Hyundai Motor and Volkswagen had to wait in line to be supplied by NXP.

Both companies spun off from Dutch electronics giant Philips.

The NXP headquarters located in Eindhoven was largely quiet on Wednesday evening as most of its workers chose to work from home, according to the company.

"We are in the markets that grow the fastest," says Maurice Geraets, executive director at NXP at the headquarters on Nov. 8.

"As cars become electric, the software will define the car. The cars will be much more software-programmable and they will get functions like radar to support the driver and that will really grow. So an electric car has twice the chips content as a traditional car and the advanced driver assistance system will also double that again. So the market will grow three to four times in the coming 10 years. And we are very well-positioned here."

The growth segment includes automotive radar, edge devices, NFC, 5G and Ultra-wideband, according to Geraets.

The NXP, in partnership with TSMC, Bosch and Infineon, recently approved its $11 billion chip plant in Germany as it looks to fortify its leading position in the industry.

It added however that the company barely has any possibility of building a manufacturing plant on its own as it can cost up to $35 billion to build one fabrication plant.

Dreaming of Europe's hydrogen hub

An aerial view of Rotterdam port [PORT OF ROTTERDAM]

The west port city of Rotterdam is where the Netherlands' ambition of becoming Europe's hydrogen hub is becoming a reality.

The futuristic ambition well-matched the ambience of the city which stood out from the historic scenery of other Dutch cities as it was completely built anew from scratch after being torn down during the Second World War and consisted of many skyscrapers.

As the biggest port in Europe, the port of Rotterdam has launched a project to build infrastructure that can handle 20 million tons of hydrogen by 2050. At the moment, the port handles 13 percent of the total energy demand of the European Union.

At the center of the infrastructure is an underground pipeline.

"Rotterdam is an energy port in some sense," said Mark Stoelinga, business manager at Hydrogen Port of Rotterdam at its Rotterdam headquarters on Nov. 7.

"But you won't see that because it goes under the pipeline underground to Germany and Belgium among others."

The port plans to build a 1,200-kilometer (746-mile) hydrogen pipeline that connects major industrial and hydrogen facilities within the country. The first phase of the construction commenced in October with a target of starting operating by 2025.

Ultimately, the hydrogen pipeline is expected to connect to a 53,000-kilometer pipeline across 28 European countries by 2040.

"We have to transition from fossil fuels to renewable fuels," says Stoelinga. "If we do that, we succeed in our target of reducing 55 percent of CO2 by 2030 and go neutral by 2050."

The firm has partnered with Korean entities, including Busan Port Authority and steelmaking company Posco as it is a potentially large user of hydrogen. The partnership however stays at exchanging data and has not yet bloomed into a tangible business, according to Stoelinga.

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is set to make a state visit to the Netherlands from Dec. 11 and plans to make a stop at the ASML headquarters in Veldhoven. This marks the first state visit from Korea since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1961. Korea's business tycoons such as Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won are set to join the presidential delegation to expand their partnerships with the European country.

BY JIN EUN-SOO [jin.eunsoo@joongang.co.kr]