As the numbers of ions in a system grows, the reality of controlling this magnitude of qubits is becoming clear. Some amount of integrated technology is required for these systems due to the limited optical access available through even the most innovative vacuum systems. Thousands of ions cannot be reasonably addressed by strictly using external lasers and imaging systems. The science and development of the supporting technology for these quantum computers is a niche, but critical, area of research. We are developing methods of integrating photonic capabilities into traps themselves, along with heterogenous integration to leverage an approach that does not require compromises. I will share our vision of scaling these quantum systems and a variety of work we are conducting on advancing not just quantum computing, but quantum technologies at Sandia National Laboratories. 

This work was funded in part by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA), and the Laboratory Directed Research and Development program at Sandia National Laboratories. Support is also acknowledged from the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, National Quantum Information Science Research Centers, Quantum Systems Accelerator. Sandia National Labs is managed and operated by NTESS, LLC, a subsidiary of Honeywell International, Inc., for the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s NNSA under contract DE-NA0003525. The views expressed in the article do not necessarily represent the views of the DOE or the U.S. Government. SAND2026-15578A