Control components are what will scale up quantum computers

The obstacle to putting quantum computers to practical use is not just the number of qubits. Mitsubishi Electric is beginning development of lasers that move atoms and compact components that amplify signals at extremely low temperatures. If many qubits can be controlled without disrupting them, large machines that can be used in areas such as logistics will be closer—but the next requirement will be for the system as a whole to outperform conventional machines.

A quantum computer is not a machine that becomes useful as soon as you add more qubits. Qubits are vulnerable to having their states disrupted by noise, and finding and correcting errors requires measuring and precisely manipulating many qubits at the same time. The control equipment needed for this is not yet in place. People in medicine, logistics and materials development are waiting for the day when quantum computing can be used for tasks that conventional computers cannot handle as well.

Adding more qubits alone does not make a computer

A qubit is a component that performs calculations using a quantum state. But practical calculations are not performed with just one qubit. A system known as error correction requires many physical qubits, along with measurement and control systems, to protect a single logical qubit. Mitsubishi Electric says that scaling up to the million-qubit level is an important challenge.

The difficulty of control also differs by architecture. In neutral-atom and trapped-ion systems, the output and stability of the lasers used to handle many atoms one by one, as well as their arrangement and command delays, become issues. In superconducting systems, the qubits are kept at extremely low temperatures. Wiring that extends from room temperature into the refrigerator, heat generation and amplification of readout signals become barriers to increasing the number of qubits.

Two components to support scaling up

On September 17, 2026, Mitsubishi Electric announced that it had been selected for two research and development projects under a NEDO program. Rather than completing a single quantum computer itself, the company will develop control components for scaling up multiple architectures.

For neutral-atom and trapped-ion systems, it will use laser technology for processing machines and FPGA-based low-latency control technology to create a high-output, highly stable laser system that can manipulate many qubits. An FPGA is an electronic component that processes instructions quickly.

For superconducting systems, the company will use microwave IC technology to develop a compact amplifier that operates at extremely low temperatures. An amplifier is a component that increases weak readout signals from qubits to a usable level. The company will verify the technology in collaboration with the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology and others.

Will the day come when they can be used in a dispatch room?

If these components can be shown to control many qubits without disrupting them, while also being easy to manufacture, the constraints imposed by control equipment as quantum computers scale up will become smaller. For example, in a dispatch room at a logistics center in Yokohama, a staff member could compare plans involving many delivery conditions without waiting until the next morning and rearrange shipments likely to be delayed. This is what it might look like if a large-scale quantum computer demonstrates a practical advantage and its usage fees and operational complexity fall.

However, industrial use will not begin with the components alone. It will be necessary to demonstrate that the entire system, including error correction, offers superior processing power and calculation accuracy to conventional computers. Before competing over the number of qubits, the question is whether the control components needed to operate them without disrupting them can be mass-produced.

Sources

Mitsubishi Electric, “Begins Research and Development toward Scaling Up Quantum Computers”