Goppion glass-encased IBM Quantum System One installed in Cleveland, Ohio, USA
Project Update – 23 Aug 2023
Image © Ryan Lavine for IBM
Occupying the central space of the atrium at Cleveland Clinic is something unexpected: a huge, cube-like partitioned showcase displaying a cylindrical metal object. It is a commanding presence, aglow with light that changes in color and intensity throughout the day.
On first glance, it brings to mind a kind of sci-fi oracle or altar. But the content of this showcase is not the stuff of speculative fiction – it is a quantum computer.
Image © Ryan Lavine for IBM
Goppion has also been involved in the installment, having previously collaborated successfully with IBM in 2018 to create a prototype, dual-chambered display case to protect the groundbreaking IBM Quantum System One.
The project was a first – and the result was a sophisticated protective cube that became a second skin for the cryostat, which further protects, cools, and connects to the quantum processor within.
Fast forward to 2023, and Goppion again collaborated with IBM to install an IBM Quantum System One at Cleveland Clinic. A similar protective cube was required, but this time the requirements were a little different.
This quantum computer installation is IBM’s first to be placed on display in a public space. Additional considerations were needed, fortunately playing to Goppion’s strengths in creating bespoke display cases for public-facing environments.
Image © Ryan Lavine for IBM
Smart lighting and transparency are combined to show the cryostat, allowing the quantum display to achieve a circadian rhythm in the interplay with natural light that enters the atrium. With a viewing public to consider, accessibility and legibility have also evolved: this installation of IBM’s quantum system can be also viewed from above through the glass enclosure’s transparent ceiling, made accessible by an underlying pantograph system that raises the whole ceiling when activated. Quantum computing can seem abstract to many people, but at Cleveland Clinic’s main campus it is now a tangible reality. Goppion is excited to be involved in the fast-evolving technology that has potential to benefit society.
Share
