UbiQD Secures $200,000 New Mexico Award for Single-Photon Source

UbiQD, Inc., a Los Alamos-based quantum dot manufacturer, received a $200,000 (€179,600) grant through New Mexico’s Quantum Technologies Award from the Economic Development Department via its Technology and Innovation Office on October 28, 2026. The non-dilutive award funds development of a specialized light source connected directly to a fiber optic cable that emits single photons on demand for quantum computers and ultra-secure quantum communication networks.

Quantum Dot Single-Photon Source Development

The grant supports optical equipment and device prototyping at UbiQD’s Los Alamos headquarters. The team will first measure how reliably its proprietary I-III-VI semiconductor quantum dots produce single photons, then refine the materials to meet industry performance targets. These cadmium-, lead-, and mercury-free dots operate at room temperature and offer tunable emission with fiber-optic coupling. The work builds on a 2024-2025 partnership with Los Alamos National Laboratory under the Technology Readiness Gross Receipts Initiative that produced detailed measurements of the same material class. Nikolay Makarov, Senior Vice President of R&D and principal investigator, co-authored a 2017 Los Alamos study showing copper indium disulfide quantum dots can emit single photons at room temperature.

Patent Portfolio Supports Commercialization

UbiQD owns or exclusively licenses 17 granted U.S. patents and 23 granted international patents, with 27 applications pending. The portfolio covers three layers: foundational patents on the quantum-dot material itself, conversion into usable forms such as films and concentrates, and specific end uses including security inks, agriculture, and solar. Some foundational patents trace to founder and CEO Hunter McDaniel’s original research at Los Alamos National Laboratory and licensed technology from M.I.T. and the University of Washington. US patent 12,085,443, “Fiber-coupled Broadband Light Source,” also granted in Korea, Canada, the Netherlands, Germany, and France, covers applications in high-speed server connections inside AI data centers and quantum hardware. McDaniel previously worked as an undergraduate researcher in Nobel laureate John Martinis’ group at UC Santa Barbara.

Bottom Line

UbiQD will prototype a room-temperature fiber-coupled single-photon source from its cadmium-free quantum dots under the state grant.

Find out more here.

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