Jan-Rainer Lahmann's RasQberry Is a Raspberry Pi-Powered IBM Quantum System One for Your Desk

IBM's Jan-Rainer Lahmann has found a neat way to showcase the company's open source Qiskit quantum computing framework: a functional 3D-printed model of a real IBM Quantum System One, powered by a Raspberry Pi.

"'RasQberry integrates Qiskit (an open source quantum computing software framework by IBM), a Raspberry Pi (the full range from Pi 4 down to a Pi Zero), and a 3D-printed model of a real quantum computer (IBM Quantum System One) to explore various state of the art technologies," Lahmann explains of the project.

While the miniaturised quantum computer certainly serves as a talking point, its purpose is more than to brighten up a desk. "[It is designed to] create a tool that can be used in meetings, meetups, demo booths, etc," Lahmann writes.

"A spectrum of quantum computing demos and 'serious games' for quantum computing (that illustrate superposition, interference and entanglement) will be made available on this device for an engaging introduction to Quantum Computing."

The project is designed to accept any model of Raspberry Pi, bar the Compute Module family, and includes a range of different models — including one with an integrated 4" touchscreen display and another which hosts a Raspberry Pi Sense HAT.

Lahmann has made the RasQberry project open source, publishing source code and 3D print files under the permissive Apache License 2.0 to the project's GitHub repository. Anyone just wanting to play with the software, meanwhile, will also find full instructions for installation and setup on an otherwise-unmodified Raspberry Pi.