The scalability problem of quantum computing may have finally been solved. As reported in APL Quantum this morning, February 3, 2026, a team from Osaka University has successfully demonstrated a new way to deliver laser light to trapped-ion qubits using “waveguide tapestries.”
Previously, delivering light to qubits required a messy forest of external lasers. The Osaka team created a power-efficient circuit where six different laser beams are routed through tiny, interwoven paths on the chip itself. This “tapestry” design allows for a much higher density of qubits without the usual heat and interference issues, moving us closer to the goal of 100,000-qubit machines.