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High-fidelity control of superconducting qubits with an optically transmitted signal

Yu-Huai Li1,2,3,*, Daojin Fan1,2,3,*, Na Li1,2,3, Fusheng Chen1,2,3, Shaowei Li1,2,3, Dong-Dong Li1,2,3,4, Yu Xu1,2,3, Jin Lin1,2,3, Ming Gong1,2,3 et al.

He-Liang Huang5, Hui Deng1,2,3, Yulin Wu1,2,3, Haoran Qian1,2,3, Shaojun Guo1,2,3, Futian Liang1,2,3, Xiaobo Zhu1,2,3, Cheng-Zhi Peng1,2,3, and Jian-Wei Pan1,2,3

  • *These authors contributed equally to this work.
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Phys. Rev. A 114, 032427 – Published 10 September, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/m1wg-synr

Abstract

Superconducting circuits exhibit remarkable potential for constructing large-scale quantum simulation and computation systems, featuring numerous qubits, extended coherence time, and precise control. Nevertheless, the growing number of signal cables poses a challenge in dilution refrigerators due to space and heat-load constraints. To overcome this issue, we experimentally implement an optically assisted transmission line as an alternative to coaxial cables. By modulating microwave signals on laser intensities at room temperature and regenerating the signals at a cryogenic plate within the dilution refrigerator, we demonstrate full control of superconducting qubits using photocurrent. We demonstrate and benchmark both single-qubit and two-qubit gates on frequency-tunable transmon qubits, achieving fidelities of 99.915% ± 0.005% and 99.676% ± 0.041%, respectively, reaching the requirement of the surface code.

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Phys. Rev. A 114, 032427– Published 10 September, 2026
  • Received 19 August 2026
  • Accepted 24 August 2026
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