A new, 13,000-square-foot quantum facility aimed at developing new quantum innovations opened in Boulder Wednesday.

The quantum incubator facility in east Boulder is meant to take quantum research from labs and turn it into real-world applications, according to a press release. The facility will include office space for early-stage quantum companies and scientific equipment, among other things.

Quantum is the study of things at a very small scale, such as electrons and atoms. Quantum technology and research manipulate those tiny molecules to make things happen. Quantum is used in things such as cell phones, self-driving cars, medical devices and barcode scanners at the grocery store.“We have been, historically, sort of the scientific driving force of the region’s modern science,” said Justin Schwartz, chancellor of the University of Colorado Boulder. “Because of the nature of Boulder and the innovation and the entrepreneurship mindset, this is also coupled and translated into advancing in that research and development pathway, from basic science to applied science, to engineering, to technology.”

The quantum incubator is funded by a state tax incentive and led by the University of Colorado Boulder. The university is providing leadership and staff resources for its development and launch.

The new facility was created in partnership with Colorado State University, the Colorado School of Mines and Elevate Quantum. Elevate Quantum is the entity that applied for and won Colorado the national quantum hub designation made up of higher education institutions, state and local governments, federal labs and private companies.

“The U.S. quantum industry is growing very quickly and very dynamically,” said Andrew Wilson, chief of the National Institute of Standards and Technology quantum physics division. “Colorado is a key part of that, a key part of this whole picture. We see enormous potential for commercial development in quantum where we’re at right now”

Since earning the designation, Elevate Quantum has secured more than $120 million to grow the industry in the Mountain West, according to the release. State legislation such as House Bill 1325, which created tax incentives to support the quantum industry, is meant to fuel initiatives expected to create tens of thousands of quantum-related jobs in the state within a decade.

The Boulder incubator complements ongoing efforts, including another quantum lab called the National Quantum Nanofab facility on the CU Boulder campus and a quantum facility in Arvada called the Quantum COmmons technology hub.

— With additional reporting by Ainsley Coogan and Rhett Kaya