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arxiv: 2502.08861 · v1 · submitted 2025-02-13 · 🪐 quant-ph · cond-mat.mes-hall

Two-dimensional Si spin qubit arrays with multilevel interconnects

Pith reviewed 2026-05-23 03:47 UTC · model grok-4.3

classification 🪐 quant-ph cond-mat.mes-hall
keywords silicon spin qubitsexchange-only qubitsmultilevel interconnectstwo-dimensional arraysrandomized benchmarkingquantum gates
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The pith

A three-layer interconnect process builds two-dimensional silicon spin qubit arrays while preserving gate fidelities above 99.9 percent.

A machine-rendered reading of the paper's core claim, the machinery that carries it, and where it could break.

The paper shows that standard semiconductor back-end-of-line interconnect fabrication can be used to create a two-dimensional array of silicon spins in which every nearest-neighbor pair remains fully controllable by exchange. In the demonstrated device the authors encode exchange-only qubits and obtain single-qubit gate fidelities that match those previously measured on single-layer devices, including values above 99.9 percent by blind randomized benchmarking. The same 2D connectivity also permits both linear and right-angle qubit layouts, so that defective sites can be avoided by reconfiguring the array. A reader would care because the result indicates that the wiring bottleneck that has limited spin-qubit demonstrations to one dimension can be removed without sacrificing coherence or control precision.

Core claim

In a device using three interconnect layers, exchange-only qubits are encoded and achieve average single-qubit gate fidelities consistent with single-layer devices, including fidelities greater than 99.9 percent as measured by blind randomized benchmarking; the two-dimensional spin connectivity further enables both linear and right-angle exchange-only qubits with high performance.

What carries the argument

The three-layer back-end-of-line interconnect stack that supplies independent control lines to every nearest-neighbor pair while preserving exchange tunability across the plane.

If this is right

  • Both linear and right-angle exchange-only qubits can be formed and operated at high fidelity in the same array.
  • Defective qubits can be bypassed by switching between linear and right-angle encodings.
  • The same interconnect architecture can be extended to larger arrays without redesign of the qubit layer itself.
  • Standard industrial semiconductor processes become directly applicable to spin-qubit scaling.

Where Pith is reading between the lines

These are editorial extensions of the paper, not claims the author makes directly.

  • The approach may allow classical control electronics to be integrated on additional metal layers above the qubit plane.
  • Similar multilayer wiring could be tested on other spin-qubit variants or on superconducting circuits that also require dense nearest-neighbor coupling.
  • If the noise floor remains unchanged with added layers, the platform could support error-corrected logical qubits whose physical density exceeds current one-dimensional limits.

Load-bearing premise

Adding the extra interconnect layers does not introduce new charge noise, strain, or defects that would lower spin coherence or exchange control beyond the levels already present in single-layer devices.

What would settle it

A direct comparison showing that average single-qubit gate fidelity in the three-layer device falls measurably below the fidelity obtained on an otherwise identical single-layer device would falsify the consistency claim.

Figures

Figures reproduced from arXiv: 2502.08861 by Aaron Smith, Bryan J. Thomas, Christi A. Peterson, Christina A. C. Garcia, Clifford E. Plesha, David J. Fialkow, Dominic Daprano, Edwin Acuna, Ian T. Counts, Isaac Khalaf, James M. Chappell, J.P. Dodson, Justin E. Christensen, Justine W. Matten, Kate Raach, Kevin Eng, Matthew G. Borselli, Matthew J. Ruiz, Matthew T. Rakher, Maxwell D. Choi, Michael P. Jura, nathan holman, Samuel J. Whiteley, Sieu D. Ha, Teresa L. Brecht, Thaddeus D. Ladd, Thomas R. B. Harris, Wonill Ha, Zachery T. Bloom.

Figure 1
Figure 1. Figure 1: FIG. 1. (a) Gate-level SEM of the 2 [PITH_FULL_IMAGE:figures/full_fig_p001_1.png] view at source ↗
Figure 2
Figure 2. Figure 2: FIG. 2. (a) A hypothetical 2D array of spins showing avail [PITH_FULL_IMAGE:figures/full_fig_p002_2.png] view at source ↗
Figure 3
Figure 3. Figure 3: FIG. 3. Exchange “fingerprint” plots for each of the seven [PITH_FULL_IMAGE:figures/full_fig_p003_3.png] view at source ↗
Figure 4
Figure 4. Figure 4: FIG. 4. (a) Exchange-only qubit characterization in a 2 [PITH_FULL_IMAGE:figures/full_fig_p004_4.png] view at source ↗
read the original abstract

The promise of quantum computation is contingent upon physical qubits with both low gate error rate and broad scalability. Silicon-based spins are a leading qubit platform, but demonstrations to date have not utilized fabrication processes capable of extending arrays in two dimensions while maintaining complete control of individual spins. Here, we implement an interconnect process, common in semiconductor manufacturing, with multiple back-end-of-line layers to show an extendable two-dimensional array of spins with fully controllable nearest-neighbor exchange interactions. In a device using three interconnect layers, we encode exchange-only qubits and achieve average single-qubit gate fidelities consistent with single-layer devices, including fidelities greater than 99.9%, as measured by blind randomized benchmarking. Moreover, with spin connectivity in two dimensions, we show that both linear and right-angle exchange-only qubits with high performance can be formed, enabling qubit array reconfigurability in the presence of defects. This extendable device platform demonstrates that industrial manufacturing techniques can be leveraged for scalable spin qubit technologies.

Editorial analysis

A structured set of objections, weighed in public.

Desk editor's note, referee report, simulated authors' rebuttal, and a circularity audit. Tearing a paper down is the easy half of reading it; the pith above is the substance, this is the friction.

Referee Report

1 major / 1 minor

Summary. The manuscript reports the implementation of a three-layer back-end-of-line interconnect process for creating two-dimensional arrays of silicon spin qubits with fully controllable nearest-neighbor exchange. Exchange-only qubits are encoded, achieving average single-qubit gate fidelities consistent with single-layer devices and exceeding 99.9% as measured by blind randomized benchmarking. The platform also enables both linear and right-angle qubit configurations for array reconfigurability around defects.

Significance. This work is significant for demonstrating that standard semiconductor manufacturing interconnects can be integrated into spin qubit devices without apparent degradation of performance, addressing a major hurdle in scaling silicon spin qubits to two dimensions. The blind benchmarking and reconfigurability demonstrations are notable strengths if the consistency claim is substantiated.

major comments (1)
  1. [Abstract and Results] The assertion that fidelities are consistent with single-layer devices (Abstract) lacks supporting quantitative data such as direct comparisons of fidelity distributions, T2* coherence times, or exchange coupling histograms between the multilevel interconnect device and single-layer controls; this is load-bearing for the claim that the interconnect process introduces no additional noise or defects.
minor comments (1)
  1. [Abstract] The abstract could more precisely specify the number of qubits or devices tested to support the yield and consistency claims.

Simulated Author's Rebuttal

1 responses · 0 unresolved

We thank the referee for their thorough review and valuable comments. We address the single major comment below.

read point-by-point responses
  1. Referee: [Abstract and Results] The assertion that fidelities are consistent with single-layer devices (Abstract) lacks supporting quantitative data such as direct comparisons of fidelity distributions, T2* coherence times, or exchange coupling histograms between the multilevel interconnect device and single-layer controls; this is load-bearing for the claim that the interconnect process introduces no additional noise or defects.

    Authors: We agree that direct quantitative comparisons are needed to fully substantiate the consistency claim. In the revised manuscript we will add a new supplementary figure (or main-text panel) that directly compares the multilevel-interconnect device against single-layer control devices fabricated in the same process flow. The comparison will include (i) histograms of single-qubit gate fidelities obtained from blind randomized benchmarking, (ii) T2* coherence-time distributions, and (iii) exchange-coupling histograms measured on nearest-neighbor pairs. These data will be accompanied by a brief statistical test (e.g., Kolmogorov-Smirnov) to quantify consistency. We believe this addition will address the referee’s concern without altering the central conclusions of the work. revision: yes

Circularity Check

0 steps flagged

No circularity: experimental device demonstration with direct measurements

full rationale

This is an experimental fabrication and characterization paper reporting measured single-qubit gate fidelities via blind randomized benchmarking in a multilevel-interconnect Si spin qubit array. No equations, derivations, or fitted parameters are presented that reduce the reported fidelities (>99.9% or consistency with single-layer devices) to inputs defined by the same data. The central claim rests on empirical RB results rather than any self-definitional, fitted-prediction, or self-citation chain. The assumption that the interconnect stack adds no extra noise is an empirical premise tested by the measurements themselves, not a circular reduction. No load-bearing steps match the enumerated circularity patterns.

Axiom & Free-Parameter Ledger

0 free parameters · 0 axioms · 0 invented entities

No mathematical derivations or free parameters are present; the work is an experimental device report. No invented entities are introduced.

pith-pipeline@v0.9.0 · 5843 in / 1121 out tokens · 25617 ms · 2026-05-23T03:47:03.070394+00:00 · methodology

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Forward citations

Cited by 1 Pith paper

Reviewed papers in the Pith corpus that reference this work. Sorted by Pith novelty score.

  1. CAbLECAR: efficiently scheduling QLDPC codes on a tileable spin qubit chip with shuttling

    quant-ph 2026-04 unverdicted novelty 6.0

    CAbLECAR provides a robotics-inspired shuttle scheduler that enables QLDPC codes on tileable spin-qubit hardware, yielding up to 86% faster schedules and orders-of-magnitude gains in encoding efficiency and logical er...

Reference graph

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