Quantum Experimental Pilot Lines for Quantum Technologies – Förderung EU-weit

Expected Outcome: This action will strengthen Europe's leadership and strategic autonomy in quantum technologies by advancing experimental pilot line capacities as a vital stepping stone toward future industrial-scale quantum hardware production. Qu-Pilot serves as the critical intermediary between academic research and the stable pilot lines under the Chips Joint Undertaking, offering a testbed for technological innovation, reproducibility, and manufacturability. Expected outcomes include: • Deployment of experimental quantum pilot lines addressing diverse platforms and materials, laying the groundwork for broader integration into Chips JU pilot lines. • Establishment of scalable and reproducible quantum fabrication processes, advancing TRL 4–6 technologies and addressing early-stage certification, standardisation, and quality control. • Reinforcement of a pan-European quantum hardware ecosystem through shared infrastructure and open-access models, fostering participation from SMEs, startups, and research institutes. • Demonstrated ability to accelerate technology maturity and feed critical feedback loops into future Chips JU stability pilot lines. • Enhanced synergies with testing infrastructures (e.g., Qu-Test), standardisation efforts, and industrialisation roadmaps, enabling horizontal integration across computing, communication, sensing, and enabling tech domains. Scope: The action is to implement the pilot production elements of the Qu-Pilot Framework Partnership Agreement. The proposal should advance the maturity of quantum hardware technologies in alignment with EU industrial strategy, emphasising flexibility, innovation, and scalability. The proposal should address: • Establishment or enhancement of experimental pilot production infrastructure for TRL 4–6 quantum hardware technologies, with strong R&D orientation. • Development of pre-industrial processes for: • Quantum processors (e.g., superconducting, trapped ions, photonic), • Quantum sensors (e.g., NV centers), • Cryo-compatible packaging and interconnects. • Integration of cleanroom capabilities with lithography, etching, and deposition tailored to quantum device requirements (e.g., silicon, diamond, III-Vs), ensuring convergence with Chips JU standards. • Creation of collaborative fabrication access models (shared-cost basis) open to academic and industrial partners. • Development of standardised workflows for yield analysis, reproducibility, and quality assurance, supporting component certification pathways. • Continuous engagement with Qu-Test and other testbeds to enable rapid iteration cycles and technology validation. • Active alignment with Chips JU’s pilot line roadmap to enable seamless transfer of validated technologies once the stability pilot lines are operational. • Contribution to a transversal European infrastructure serving multiple quantum domains (computing, sensing, communications), ensuring cross-domain integration and maximising synergies. Technology Readiness Level - Technology readiness level expected from completed projects The rules are described in General Annex B of the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2026-2027. Activities are expected to validate technologies starting at TRL 3/4 and confirm their progression to TRL 5/7 by the end of the project. ">General conditions 1. Admissibility conditions: Proposal page limit and layout described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes. Proposal page limits and layout: described in Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System. 2. Eligible countries described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. The following exceptions apply: the eligibility conditions are those established in the EuroHPC JU Council Regulation (EU) 2021/1173 as last amended by Council Regulation 2026/150. In accordance with Article 22.5 of the HE Regulation, the Governing Board has decided that in order to achieve the expected outcomes, and safeguard the Union’s strategic assets, interests, autonomy, or security participation is limited to legal entities established in Member States or Participating States of the EuroHPC JU [At the moment of the adoption of the Amendment No 5, the Participating States of EuroHPC JU are Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and United Kingdom (Discover EuroHPC JU - The European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU))]. In addition, legal entities which are established in associated countries to Horizon Europe that become a participant state to EuroHPC JU before the signature of the grant agreement will also become eligible. For the duly justified and exceptional reasons listed in the paragraph above, in order to guarantee the protection of the strategic interests of the Union and its Member States, entities established in an eligible country listed above, but which are directly or indirectly controlled by a non-eligible country or by a non-eligible country entity, may not participate in the action unless it can be demonstrated, by means of guarantees approved by the eligible country of establishment, that their participation to the action would not negatively impact the Union’s strategic, assets, interests, autonomy, or security. 3. Other Eligibility Conditions described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. The following exceptions apply: The eligibility conditions are those established in the EuroHPC JU Council Regulation (EU) 2021/1173 as last amended by Council Regulation 2026/150. In accordance with Article 22.5 of the HE Regulation, the Governing Board has decided that in order to achieve the expected outcomes, and safeguard the Union’s strategic assets, interests, autonomy, or security participation is limited to legal entities established in Member States or Participating States of the EuroHPC JU [At the moment of the adoption of the Amendment No 5, the Participating States of EuroHPC JU are Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and United Kingdom (Discover EuroHPC JU - The European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU))]. In addition, legal entities which are established in associated countries to Horizon Europe that become a participant state to EuroHPC JU before the signature of the grant agreement will also become eligible. For the duly justified and exceptional reasons listed in the paragraph above, in order to guarantee the protection of the strategic interests of the Union and its Member States, entities established in an eligible country listed above, but which are directly or indirectly controlled by a non-eligible country or by a non-eligible country entity, may not participate in the action unless it can be demonstrated, by means of guarantees approved by the eligible country of establishment, that their participation to the action would not negatively impact the Union’s strategic, assets, interests, autonomy, or security. 4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes. 5a. Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes. 5b. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes The general criteria are described in the General Annex D of the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2026-2027. described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual. 5c. Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes. 6. Legal and financial set-up of the grants described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes. Specific conditions described in the [specific topic of the Work Programme] The documents are described in General Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2026-2027. Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA): Application form templates Please use the application form that you will find in the Submission System. You can find examples of standard application forms in the Reference Documents page. Evaluation form templates — will be used with the necessary adaptations Standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA) Standard evaluation form (HE CSA) Standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA and CSA Stage 1) Standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA and CSA Stage 1 BLIND) Standard evaluation form (HE PCP PPI) Standard evaluation form (HE COFUND) Standard evaluation form (HE FPA) Guidance HE Programme Guide Model Grant Agreements (MGA) HE MGA HE Unit MGA Lump Sum MGA Operating Grants MGA Framework Partnership Agreement FPA Call-specific instructions Detailed budget table (HE LS) Information on financial support to third parties (HE) Information on clinical studies (HE) Guidance: "Lump sums - what do I need to know?" Additional documents: EuroHPC Work Programme 2026 (Decision 22/2026 Amendment No 3) HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 1. General Introduction HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 2. Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 3. Research Infrastructures HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 4. Health HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 5. Culture, Creativity and Inclusive Society HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 6. Civil Security for Society HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 7. Digital, Industry and Space HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 8. Climate, Energy and Mobility HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 9. Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 10. European Innovation Ecosystems (EIE) HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 11. Widening participation and strengthening the European Research Area HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 12. Missions HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 13. New European Bauhaus Facility (NEB) HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 14. Horizontal Activities HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 15. General Annexes HE Framework Programme and Rules for Participation Regulation 2021/695 HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764 EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509 Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement