Jeonbuk National University (JBNU) Professor Hee-Dae Kim's research team (Department of Semiconductor Science and Technology, corresponding author) developed a new energy production technology that suggests the feasibility of implementing next-generation quantum computers that require no electricity. This research achievement was published in the latest issue of Carbon Energy (impact factor 25.28, JCR top 3%).

This study was conducted jointly with Dr. Ha-Young Lee (co-first author, JBNU G-Lamp Project Group), Honorary Professor Sam-Nyeong Lee of Korea Maritime and Ocean University, Professor Hyung-Su Ahn, and Professor Seon-Ryeong Hwang of Kangnam University.

The research team succeeded in advancing the "Light Pressure Electricity Generator (LPEG)" technology, which generates electricity using light pressure.

The team combined silver (Ag) nanoparticles with graphene oxide (GO) to significantly increase power generation efficiency. They inserted graphene oxide into the silver nanoparticles and used it as a nanoscale spacer to maintain the gaps.

As a result, the output of the previous LPEG increased from 241 mV and 3.1 μA to 310 mV and 9.3 μA, an improvement of more than threefold.

They also identified the key mechanism through Raman measurements and FDTD and COMSOL Multiphysics simulations, showing that strong electric fields (hotspots) concentrate between the silver nanoparticles, improving power generation efficiency.

This research achievement is attracting attention because it can be extended to a quantum computer architecture that can generate its own energy internally without external power connections. In particular, the method of energy transfer using light does not produce electrical noise, and is therefore expected to have significant applications in quantum computing, where precise calculations are required.

The research team is expanding the technology to develop a new hardware architecture that removes external power connections for quantum computers and enables autonomous energy generation and utilization within cryogenic environments.

Professor Hee-Dae Kim said, "We expect this research achievement to become a core foundation for the development of noise-free quantum computers," and added, "We will continue to expand our research to contribute to ushering in the next generation of quantum computing."