Valla Fatemi
ON THE RECORD · 7 verbatim quotes · every quote source-verified
“We figured out a relatively simple change, by using some physical and materials insights, to bring that temperature down into a zone that is translatable to nanofabrication systems in industry, while showing that in our academic context we can have leading-edge performance of these devices.”
Valla Fatemi · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-18
Researchers lowered the process temperature of tantalum deposition into a range compatible with standard industrial nanofabrication systems.
“This is a big step forward not only for our group but also Cornell's efforts in superconducting quantum information devices.”
Valla Fatemi · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-18
Fatemi highlighted the significance of the findings for Cornell's quantum device research.
“The performance of the devices in our lab is very sensitive to that step now. Historically, that was not necessarily obvious. But our devices are at a level of performance that we're able to see big differences based on subtle changes that we make to the formation of the Josephson junction,”
Valla Fatemi · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-18
Fatemi described the heightened sensitivity of their devices to small changes in the formation of the Josephson junction.
“We're right at the world-leading edge,”
Valla Fatemi · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-18
Fatemi praised the high quality of the resulting quantum thin films.
“That work got the ball rolling for us in understanding a lot of the surface science and how that correlates with improving performance,”
Valla Fatemi · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-18
Fatemi reflected on prior work with argon-bombarded niobium that helped his lab understand surface science.
“Tantalum as a material has been shown to be very exciting from a device performance perspective, but its manufacturability had some question marks because of integration challenges such as required process temperatures,”
Valla Fatemi · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-18
Cornell researchers developed a technique using krypton gas to reduce the required deposition temperature for tantalum in quantum chipmaking.
“So we're entering a new domain for what matters or doesn't matter.”
Valla Fatemi · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-18
Fatemi explained how precise device performance has revealed the impact of subtle fabrication factors.