TORONTO, February 25, 2026 -- Xanadu (Xanadu Quantum Technologies Inc.), a world leader in photonic quantum computing, in partnership with Mitsubishi Chemical, a major Japanese chemical manufacturer, has announced the release of a new paper detailing a novel quantum simulation technique for semiconductor chip research and development. The pre-print research paper provides a scalable technique for simulating quantum processes involved in extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography, a wafer patterning technique critical for developing the most advanced semiconductor chips.

EUV lithography is one of the leading tools used in the manufacturing of advanced semiconductor chips. However, the process is often plagued by a complex phenomenon called radiation-induced blurring that reduces the effectiveness of the resulting chip. Key steps in this phenomenon are highly quantum in nature and are difficult to simulate using existing classical computing approaches. This paper proposes a suite of novel quantum simulation algorithms that could be used to reduce these blurring effects, overcoming difficult barriers for fabricating more advanced chips.

"Precise modeling of materials interacting with EUV light is a formidable challenge for the semiconductor industry," said Christian Weedbrook, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Xanadu. "By simulating EUV sensitivity using quantum algorithms, Xanadu has developed a blueprint for how quantum computers can be used to tackle some of the most relevant problems facing the semiconductor market today."

This work shows that one of the key methods presented, designed to run on utility-scale fault tolerant quantum computers (FTQCs), predicts critical details of the EUV photoabsorption spectrum. For a target model system, such as 4-Iodo-2-methylphenol, the algorithm demonstrates the potential to meet strict resource requirements, targeting fewer than 500 qubits, which is essential for execution on early FTQC machines, such as those envisioned by Xanadu.

“Accurately modelling the coupled electronic and chemical dynamics that drive EUV-induced blur has been a long-standing challenge for the semiconductor industry. Mitsubishi Chemical is pleased to partner with Xanadu in applying quantum simulation to EUV photoresist design. The results demonstrate promising approaches to modelling the complex radiation-driven processes that limit lithographic resolution,” said Qi Gao, Senior Chief Scientist, Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation

Through their collaboration, Xanadu and Mitsubishi Chemical have established one of the first concrete industrial use cases for quantum computing for semiconductors. By providing a method to accurately simulate and reduce radiation-induced blurring in EUV lithography, this work paves the way for the development of ever-smaller and more complex semiconductor chips.