Quantum sensors: new possibilities for medicine, everyday life and industry

They can detect cancer earlier, control prostheses and measure the tiniest signals at the limits of what is theoretically possible. Quantum sensors are the cutting-edge technology in the field of sensor technology. As part of the Future Cluster finalist "Quantum Sensors of the Future" (QSens), a team led by Prof. Jens Anders, cluster spokesperson and head of the Institute of Smart Sensors (IIS), and Prof. Jörg Wrachtrup, co-spokesperson and head of the 3rd Institute of Physics at the University of Stuttgart, is researching quantum sensor technology.

QSens is a cluster initiative in which the Universities of Stuttgart and Ulm, the Institute for Microelectronics Stuttgart (IMS CHIPS), the Hahn-Schickard Institute for Microassembly Technology (Stuttgart), and so far 17 industrial partners have joined forces to make quantum sensors suitable for everyday use. It is one of 16 finalists in the competition of the Future Clusters Initiative (Clusters4Future) of the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

"We are making quantum sensors fit for everyday use," says Anders, describing one of QSens' tasks. The scientists want to develop high-precision and low-cost sensors for industry and end customers. The first quantum sensors are to be mass-produced in three to four years.