Quantum Superconductivity and Metamaterials: HSE MIEM’s Developments Presented at Future Technologies Forum
This year, the Future Technologies Forum focused on new materials and chemistry. Scientists from HSE University participated in the event. Alexei Vagov, Director of the Centre for Quantum Metamaterials at HSE Tikhonov Moscow Institute of Electronics and Mathematics (HSE MIEM), discussed developments in quantum superconducting electronics and the creation of high-entropy materials for energy storage and perovskite solar panels.
The Future Technologies Forum is a platform for discussing the development of high-tech industries in Russia. This year, around 2,000 scientists, top company executives, and government representatives discussed chemistry and new materials. Russian President Vladimir Putin participated in the forum's plenary session.
‘In order to become a leader in key areas of scientific and technological development, and this is the task we have set for ourselves, we need to achieve excellence in chemistry and new materials development,’ the Russian president emphasised. ‘This means that we must offer solutions and products that are competitive in terms of pricing and quality and, most importantly, innovative. We need to possess our own technological keys that will enable us to produce and export not just raw materials, but high-standard goods to global markets.’
HSE representatives actively participated in the forum. The session ‘Quantum Technologies: At the Frontier of What Is Possible’ featured Alexey Ossadtchi, Director of the Centre for Bioelectric Interfaces at the HSE Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, and Alexander Chulok, Director of the Centre for Science and Technology Foresight at the HSE Institute for Statistical Studies and Economics of Knowledge. Alexei Vagov gave a talk at the session ‘Metamaterials: The Future of Technology,’ presenting research conducted in collaboration with the National Research Nuclear University (MEPhI) and the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT). The main focus of their research work is on superconductivity and its applications in electronics.
Alexei Vagov
‘In my view, quantum superconducting electronics is an important research area today. At our centre, this is our primary focus,’ said Alexei Vagov. Can a quantum diode be created? Scientists believe the answer is yes. Although research remains fundamental, the diode effect—where different currents flow in opposite directions within a device—has already been demonstrated.
‘For example, is it possible to create a superconducting device in which the current depends on an applied magnetic field? Apply one magnetic field, and one current flows; apply another, and a different current flows. Or consider the dependence of current on controllable light: could a light-to-current converter be developed? Can we achieve this? It is a big question, but we are now on the verge of exploring this using quantum physics,’ the scholar explained.
Alexei Vagov highlighted two key research tracks where progress has reached a level enabling the creation of functioning technologies today. The first involves quantum detectors for transmitting various types of information. A distinct field has emerged around single-photon detectors, led at MIEM by Grigory Goltsman's research group. Another type of detector already in use is ultra-precise quantum magnetic field detectors, applied, for instance, in mineral exploration.
The second track focuses on using superconductivity in quantum computing. Here, two main research areas stand out: fluxonium computing for precise magnetic field measurements and computing quantum states with topological properties.
Additionally, Alexei Vagov presented work on superconducting metamaterials at the Centre for Quantum Metamaterials at HSE MIEM without using quantum methods.
‘We are developing perovskite solar panels with effective light absorption. We need a material where defects remain stable. We cannot eliminate defects entirely, but we can ensure they are not “floating” defects. Another area is high-entropy materials for energy storage. This is an interesting challenge where structural disorder is advantageous,’ Alexei Vagov explained. ‘Often, disorder in a material’s structure enhances superconductivity. The challenge is not creating a “pure” structure but a “dirty” one with controlled impurity parameters. Our experience and research suggest that soon, cathodes in lithium-ion batteries may be replaced with high-entropy materials.’
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