Qolab: Strategy and a Demonstration of Automated Calibration on a Live Device

At the APS March Meeting, Qolab presented a rare live demonstration of quantum hardware control: a real-time calibration of superconducting qubits executed remotely on a Qolab QPU in Madison. With no pre-recorded steps or fallback sequences, the experiment unfolded in front of a live audience—and ran flawlessly.

The calibration sequence was powered by Quantum Machines’ QUAlibrate platform, enabling complete automation of pulse-level procedures including qubit spectroscopy, Rabi oscillations, drag tuning, randomized benchmarking, and coherence measurements. For researchers working hands-on with superconducting qubit systems, the demo provided a clear and realistic view of how robust automation can simplify even the most delicate tuning workflows.

Key Insights
• Live pulse-level control: The calibration ran in real-time on physical hardware, with no manual retuning—showcasing system stability under real operating conditions.
• End-to-end automation: QUAlibrate orchestrated the entire routine—spectroscopy through benchmarking—via an intuitive, menu-driven interface ideal for iterative lab work.
• Infrastructure designed for reproducibility: Qolab’s mount featured short wire bonds, superconducting ground planes, and clean DC routing—reducing noise and thermal instability.
• Practical for multi-qubit scaling: The workflow demonstrated how pulse-level calibration can be structured for repeatability across more complex devices.
• Enables state-of-the-art experimentation: The setup supports researchers in conducting high-fidelity experiments with direct pulse-level access and minimal overhead.

This wasn’t a proof of concept—it was a working system. And by running it live, Qolab and Quantum Machines demonstrated what’s possible when precision hardware and orchestration software are tightly integrated. The demo provided not just confidence in the tools—but a practical benchmark for how advanced quantum calibration can be reliably performed, even in front of a crowd.