Earlier this year, I received a series of emails about the Better Futures Innovation Challenge. At the time, I was swamped with lab work, trying to wrap up my final results before diving into my thesis. So, like most of my inbox, those emails remained unread. Thankfully, I received some encouragement from Tich-Lam who pestered me to sign up. On the last day of applications, I finally took a look at the competition, and one of the challenges caught my eye. The task was to create a low-cost quantum sensor with practical applications beyond just academic research. It sounded broad with plenty of room for creativity and innovation, so I filled out the application and sent it off.
A few weeks later, I found myself at RMIT in Melbourne, surrounded by academics from all over Australia. We were randomly grouped into teams of four or five, and the challenge was laid out: come up with a quantum technology that:
- Utilises a true quantum phenomenon.
- Performs better or at a lower cost compared to an equivalent classical system.
- Is feasible to build in a typical research lab.
I was put into a team with Nicholas Godfrey (QUT), Kyle Portwin (UOW), and Errol Hunt (who I happened to already know from FLEET). We had just two days to brainstorm and develop our ideas before presenting them to a panel of judges with academic and industry backgrounds.
Our team came up with a novel seismometer that exploited the quantum tunnelling effect to measure small vibrations. Quantum tunnelling is this weird phenomenon where electricity can flow across two conductors, even when there’s a gap between them. Classical physics says this shouldn’t happen, but if the gap is small enough, quantum mechanics steps in and allows a tiny current to flow. The tunnelling current is extremely sensitive to the size of the gap, which can be influenced by seismic vibrations, making them measurable.
We had to pitch our quantum seismometer to the judges, convincing them not only that it could work but also that it addressed a real problem and had a market. We brainstormed a range of applications, from military to mining, but the standout for us was early earthquake detection. If we could build a cheap seismometer that matched or outperformed current technology, we might enable earthquake-prone areas, especially in developing nations, to sound the alarm a little earlier and save lives in the process.
There were many impressive presentations, and today we were thrilled to be one of the teams announced, shortlisted to develop our idea further. We received $5,000 in R&D funds and six more weeks to work on our project. The three shortlisted teams will present their progress in a virtual event, with cash prizes and mentorship opportunities for the winning team to take their idea to the next level. Watch this space to see how we go!
