SQA alumnus Dr Ajit Dash recognised with two national measurement awards

Sydney Quantum Academy (SQA) congratulates alumnus Dr Ajit Dash on receiving two honours at the 2026 National Measurement Institute (NMI) Measurement Awards.

Ajit completed his PhD at UNSW Sydney in 2025 under the supervision of SQA experts Dr Tuomo Tanttu and Professor Andrew Dzurak. He now works as a Qubit Measurement Engineer at Diraq, where he specialises in quantum device characterisation, cryogenic measurements and quantum electrical metrology.

Building on his doctoral research, Ajit played a key role in a in a collaboration between UNSW Sydney, the National Measurement Institute, Diraq and GlobalFoundries to develop a new quantum standard for electric current using commercial semiconductor technology. This work earned him the Measurement Achievement Encouragement Award for Early to Mid-career Achievements and the People's Choice Award in this year's NMI honours.

The research supports a practical way to realise the ampere, the international base unit for electric current, and aims to make highly accurate electrical measurement more accessible by moving quantum technologies from specialist laboratories into systems that can be manufactured at scale.

The team achieved several world firsts, including generating quantum electrical current in a commercial semiconductor device and demonstrating accurate operation using simpler, lower-cost equipment. These advances could make quantum measurement technology easier to implement and accelerate its adoption across industry, with potential applications in advanced manufacturing, medical technology, environmental monitoring and space research, all of which rely on highly precise electrical measurements.

Reflecting on the recognition, Ajit said " This recognition means a lot to me and reflects the support of my supervisor, Dr Tuomo Tanttu, and my colleagues and collaborators at Diraq and UNSW, and Dr Dimitrios Georgakopoulos, Dr Owen Brace and Dr Ilya Budovsky from the National Measurement Institute, Australia. I also extend my thanks to the Sydney Quantum Academy for providing a wonderful environment to learn and collaborate with researchers across the quantum community."

Ajit's achievement highlights the impact of Australia's quantum ecosystem and the growing influence of SQA alumni as they translate leading-edge research into real-world technologies and outcomes.