Oxford Ionics has installed a full-stack quantum computer at the UK’s National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) in Harwell, Oxfordshire.

Dubbed QUARTET (Quantum Advantage-Ready Trapped-ion Exploration Testbed), the system will be used for research and development in support of the UK government’s five ‘Quantum Missions.’

The NQCC is the UK's national lab for quantum computing, jointly delivered by two research councils within UK Research and Innovation – the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and the Science and Technology Facilities Council.

The center works with partners across industry, government, and the research community, with its core funding provided by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, the main funding body for engineering and physical sciences research in the UK.

QUARTET is a trapped-ion quantum computer based on Oxford Ionics’ Electronic Qubit Control technology, which uses electronics instead of lasers to control its qubits. According to the company, everything necessary to trap and control the qubits is integrated onto a standard electronic chip, which can be manufactured in traditional foundries.

Additionally, Oxford Ionics says its quantum computers are field-upgradable, meaning the QUARTET system at the NQCC can be upgraded to match the company’s highest-performing system by switching out the QPU (Quantum Processor Unit).

“Installing QUARTET at the NQCC marks a major milestone – not just for our company, but for unlocking a future powered by quantum computing,” said Dr. Chris Ballance, co-founder and CEO of Oxford Ionics.

“QUARTET represents a significant step forward in making commercially valuable quantum computing a reality, ensuring we are equipped with the compute power to solve some of the world’s most pressing challenges. We’re proud to support the NQCC as they explore and develop transformative applications capable of delivering real-world impact.”

Dr. Michael Cuthbert, NQCC director, added: “The successful installation of the QUARTET trapped-ion quantum computer by Oxford Ionics marks a pivotal step forward in the NQCC's quantum computing testbeds initiative. The proprietary architecture of the system is designed to tackle the scalability challenges of quantum computing.”

Founded in 2019 by Ballance and Dr. Tom Harty, Oxford Ionics was acquired by US quantum computing company IonQ in June 2025 for $1.08 billion.

The companies said that, together, they expect to build systems with 256 physical qubits at accuracies of 99.99 percent by 2026 and advance to over 10,000 physical qubits with logical accuracies of 99.99999 percent by 2027.

By 2030, the firms claim they should achieve two million physical qubits with logical qubit accuracies exceeding 99.9999999999 percent.