According to ChainCatcher, IBM announced its next-generation superconducting processor, IBM Quantum Nighthawk R3, designed to accurately execute 10,000 quantum operations across 520 programmable qubits. The processor contains 2,034 physical qubits, retains the square-lattice connectivity and fast-operation architecture of Nighthawk R2, and adds 10 chip-to-chip interconnects called l-couplers. IBM plans to connect two Nighthawk R3 processors into a single 1,040-qubit system in 2027.
Nighthawk R2, which is already in use, has 120 programmable qubits, 218 couplers and 120 reset elements. It can run more than 100,000 circuits per second, with throughput about 25 times that of Heron. Partner workloads have run up to 19 times faster, while E.ON reported a 15-fold speedup.
IBM previously used four l-couplers to connect two Nighthawk R1 processors, achieving quantum-state transfer fidelity of up to 99.3% and an average of 99%. The two connected cryogenic modules cooled to below 15 millikelvins within five days.