News

Across the great divide: from lab to marketplace

Media Release, Friday 17 April 2009

University of Melbourne researchers have leapt the lab to marketplace divide, by selling the world’s first Single Photon Source to Germany. Single Photon Sources are the key to advances in Quantum Communications which will provide unprecedented Ultra-high Security for information transfer.

Less than 12 months after prototyping the world’s first commercial source of individual photons using diamond based quantum technology, Quantum Communications Victoria (QCV), within the school of Physics at the University, have sold a Single Photon Product to German Government-based Standards Agency Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt.

Dr Steve Trpkovski, Director of Product Development at QCV, hopes this will be the first of many sales for this SPS1.01 and other products derived from the Single Photon Technology research.

“The Victorian Government, through the STI funding scheme, provided the QCV with $3.3 Million to create this prototype and this sale and ongoing sales are the payback; by selling our products globally we help stimulate the economy and create more jobs in Victoria, we didn’t want our technology just to sit in a lab”. Steve said.

While the German organisation plan to use the device to test Standards of optical and electronic equipment, The Single Photon Technology has the potential to be used for various quantum-based applications, including as a component in secure telecommunications systems.

“This sale demonstrates the usefulness of the Technology and we hope to see a company or government department buy the products for 100 per cent secure telecommunications applications.”

“We feel this will be invaluable in countering cyber-terrorism and corporate espionage by enabling secure communication via optical fibre or satellite. Government Departments are engaged in discussions with QCV for trialing the technology.”

Steve says it’s important for QCV to lead the way in making prototypes from the lab economically viable.

For more information contact:
Dr Steve Trpkovski
Director of Product Development
T: +613 8344 8744
M: +61 411 733 234
E: strp@unimelb.edu.au