![\"FAMU](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/1024x768_QuantumRefrigerators.jpg\")
FAMU researchers are hoping to make significant advancements in the frontier of quantum\n science. (Photo by Jeff Adams\/FAMU)<\/p>\n
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. \u2014 Inside a newly renovated laboratory at Florida A&M University
\n sits a machine capable of creating an environment colder than outer space. It may
\n sound like science fiction, but for FAMU researchers, it is the beginning of something
\n very real, and potentially transformative.<\/p>\n
The machine is a dilution refrigerator, one of two purchased through a pair of five-year
\n National Science Foundation grants totaling $10 million. It is not a refrigerator
\n in the familiar sense. There are no shelves or food inside. Its job is to remove nearly
\n every trace of heat and vibration so researchers can study qubits, the extraordinarily
\n sensitive building blocks of quantum computers.<\/p>\n
Together, the refrigerators and the quantum research center FAMU established two years
\n ago place the University in a rapidly developing field that could change how scientists\u2019
\n approach some of society\u2019s most complicated problems, from designing medicines and
\n protecting health data to forecasting weather and producing fertilizer with less energy
\n and pollution.<\/p>\n
They also give FAMU students something equally valuable: the opportunity to learn
\n on sophisticated equipment at the leading edge of science without leaving Tallahassee.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to be here for the breakthrough,\u201d said Charles Weatherford, Ph.D., physics professor and director of the FAMU Center for Plasma Science and Technology,
\n where the Quantum Lab is located. \u201cI want to be here when it happens.\u201d<\/p>\n
What happens inside an ultra-cold lab<\/p>\n
To understand the excitement, it helps to begin with the computers most people use
\n every day. Traditional computers process information through bits, each represented
\n as either a zero or a one. Quantum computers use qubits, which draw on the unusual
\n rules of quantum physics to represent and process information in more complex ways.<\/p>\n
That does not mean quantum computers will replace laptops or make every calculation
\n faster. Their promise lies in certain problems with so many possible variables that
\n even today\u2019s conventional systems can struggle to solve them. A quantum computer could
\n examine vast numbers of possibilities in a fraction of the time.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt can try millions of methods very quickly,\u201d Weatherford said. \u201cThat\u2019s what we\u2019re
\n looking for.\u201d<\/p>\n
There is a catch: Qubits are fragile. Ordinary heat, vibration and other environmental
\n interference can disrupt their quantum state and introduce errors. The dilution refrigerator
\n creates the quiet, ultra-cold setting needed to control them.<\/p>\n
FAMU researchers are hoping to make significant advancements in the frontier of quantum
\n science. (Photo by Jeff Adams\/FAMU)<\/p>\n
\u201cThe refrigerator is required to achieve the operating environment for the qubits,\u201d
\n said Wei Guo, Ph.D., a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering.
\n \u201cWe have to get rid of thermal noise so we can manipulate the quantum state and harness
\n its properties for computing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Guo said the first refrigerator has been installed and passed its performance tests.
\n His team plans to begin with a six-qubit chip fabricated through the MIT Quantum Foundry.
\n Researchers will use microwaves to control the qubits and test entanglement, a quantum
\n connection between particles that is essential to how quantum systems process information.<\/p>\n
Before researchers can scale a technology, they must first prove they can control
\n it reliably. Each experiment will provide information that can help them build more
\n stable qubits.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis research is all about developing better qubits,\u201d Guo said. \u201cIf we can build
\n a large-scale quantum computer, then we can solve complicated problems that even large
\n clusters of classical computers cannot solve.\u201d<\/p>\n
From cleaner fertilizer to stronger data protection<\/p>\n
The science is highly technical, but its potential impact is not difficult to imagine.<\/p>\n
At FAMU, researchers are studying whether advanced computing can help protect clinical
\n health information by comparing conventional and quantum methods of generating the
\n random numbers used in cybersecurity. Weatherford is also exploring a cleaner way
\n to produce ammonia, an essential ingredient in fertilizer.<\/p>\n
Much of the world\u2019s ammonia is made through the Haber-Bosch process, which requires
\n significant energy and produces substantial carbon emissions. Weatherford and his
\n collaborators are studying catalysts that could support a cleaner process using less
\n expensive materials. The chemical interactions are complicated, however, and finding
\n the right combination may require testing an enormous number of possibilities, precisely
\n the kind of challenge advanced computing may help researchers untangle.<\/p>\n
![\"Charles](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/1024x768_CharlesWeatherford.jpg\")
FAMU Physics Professor Charles Weatherford is looking forward to witnessing the scientific
\n breakthroughs that the dilution refrigerators will make possible. (Photo by Jeff Adams\/FAMU)<\/p>\n
Guo sees possibilities in drug development, weather forecasting and materials science.
\n Researchers could use advanced computing to model how molecules interact, potentially
\n narrowing the search for compounds that perform a specific medical function. They
\n could also explore materials that are stronger, more efficient or capable of carrying
\n electricity with far less energy loss.<\/p>\n
One of the field\u2019s major goals is developing superconducting materials that function
\n closer to room temperature. Most superconductors must remain extremely cold. If scientists
\n can design materials that offer similar performance under everyday conditions, the
\n discovery could support more efficient power systems and technologies that do not
\n yet exist.<\/p>\n
The questions are difficult, and the outcomes are not guaranteed. That uncertainty
\n is part of what keeps Weatherford engaged. \u201cWe could do something really important
\n here in this lab,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Building the infrastructure for R1<\/p>\n
A $10 million research investment can purchase impressive equipment, but the equipment
\n still needs the right home. FAMU\u2019s Office of Title III provided approximately $500,000
\n to renovate and prepare the laboratory space. The Division of Research contributed
\n another $50,000, while the NSF grants funded the dilution refrigerators.<\/p>\n
Eric Akins, Ph.D., executive director of the Office of Title III, did not need to understand every
\n equation to recognize what the researchers needed. His office\u2019s role was to help remove
\n a practical barrier standing between an ambitious idea and a functioning laboratory.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy role has never been to fully understand all of the physics,\u201d Akins said. \u201cIt is
\n to support what they need to do and help take the initiative to the next step.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Title](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/1024x768_DirectorAkins.jpg\")
Title III Executive Director Eric Akins emphasizes that support is critical to expanding
\n faculty capabilities and advancing toward R1 status. (Photo by Jeff Adams\/FAMU)<\/p>\n
According to Akins, the things that limit researchers are often the resources on the
\n table to help them accomplish what they need to do. \u201cWhen we talk about trying to
\n get to R1, these are the investments we need to make to have an impact on the University,\u201d
\n he said.<\/p>\n
In Akins’ mind, the calculation was simple: FAMU had an opportunity to place its faculty
\n and students in a consequential area of research, and the University needed the infrastructure
\n to make that opportunity real.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you build it, they will come,\u201d he said. \u201cIf we build it, and we have it, that
\n will open a lot of doors for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those doors could lead to new grants, partnerships, discoveries and a stronger pipeline
\n of doctoral students. Under the Carnegie Classification\u2019s 2025 methodology, an institution
\n reaches Research 1 status by recording at least $50 million in annual research and
\n development spending and awarding at least 70 research doctorates annually, based
\n on the higher of the most recent year or a three-year average. Weatherford said FAMU
\n has exceeded the research-spending threshold in recent years. Increasing doctoral
\n degree production remains the larger challenge.<\/p>\n
Facilities such as the quantum laboratory help address both measures. Competitive
\n grants expand research activity, while specialized equipment helps attract faculty
\n and graduate students who want to work where the future is taking shape. Their work
\n can generate doctoral degrees, publications, patents, partnerships and the next round
\n of external funding.<\/p>\n
![\"Quantum](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/1024x768_.QuantumFridge2.jpg\")
FAMUs new quantum refrigerators can make the impossible possible. (Photo by Jeff Adams\/FAMU)<\/p>\n
Weatherford pointed to Jessica Tucker, Ph.D., his recent FAMU Ph.D. graduate, who conducted her quantum computing research at
\n Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, supported by his National Nuclear
\n Security grant. FAMU\u2019s new local capacity can give more students meaningful experience
\n on campus while connecting them to a national research network.<\/p>\n
The work ahead will be measured and methodical: install the chip, control the qubits,
\n study what goes wrong and try again. That is how frontier science advances, one carefully
\n tested question at a time.<\/p>\n
But inside FAMU\u2019s ultra-cold laboratory, those questions now have room to grow. And
\n the answers could reach far beyond the walls of the University; into hospitals, farms,
\n power grids, businesses and communities.<\/p>\n
Editor\u2019s Note: This article was edited with a custom AI prompt. The\u00a0AI\u00a0optimized the
\n article for SEO discoverability, improved clarity, structure and readability while
\n preserving the original reporting and factual content. Human editors at Florida A&M
\n University conducted a final review of all\u00a0AI-suggested edits before publication.
\n All information and viewpoints remain those of the author and publication. This disclosure
\n is part of our commitment to transparency in our editorial process.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Media Contact<\/p>\n
Rachel James-Terry
Senior Director of Strategic Communications
rachel.jamesterry@famu.edu<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n