Company · Didcot
Element Six grows synthetic diamond by chemical vapour deposition, and for quantum use it sells grades engineered to carry nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centres, the defects behind diamond magnetometers, RF sensors and masers. The De Beers Group company is based on Harwell Campus, where in September 2021 it launched DNV-B14, with more than ten times the NV density of its earlier DNV-B1. Its newer work targets scale and networking: quantum-grade diamond films bonded to silicon with IonQ in September 2025, and a reproducible 3-inch single-crystal wafer process with Orbray in June 2026.
Element Six is a Didcot company working on diamond nv, quantum materials and quantum components, founded in 1946. It appears as a partner in Q-BIOMED and QCS.
Sources: Harwell-based Element Six launches new grade of diamond for quantum | Harwell Campus · IonQ & Element Six: Diamond Films for Quantum Networks | Quantum Zeitgeist · Orbray & E6 Establish Reproducible Process for 3-Inch Diamond | Quantum Zeitgeist · Companies House: Element Six Technologies Limited (08206603)
Q-BIOMED
A national research hub that develops quantum sensors for earlier diagnosis of disease. UCL and the University of Cambridge lead it.
Role: Partner
Funding: £24m
Themes: Sensing, Biomedical and health, Imaging
QCS
The phase 2 national hub for quantum computing and simulation, led by the University of Oxford. It ran from 2019 to 2024.
Role: Partner
Funding: £27.3m
Themes: Computing, Software and algorithms
Recent articles from Quantum Zeitgeist that mention Element Six.
Element Six presents scalable diamond quantum platforms for sensing, networking, and computing at Quantum World Congress 2026.
Image © Quantum Zeitgeist
The University of Birmingham & EPRI’s £2.63 million FURESHMA program will test advanced boride & carbide shielding materials, vital for durable fusion reactor components.
Image © Quantum Zeitgeist
Extending quantum memory from under half a microsecond to over one millisecond represents a substantial advance in diamond qubit technology. All-optical dynamical decoupling has now achieved this coherence extension in a nickel-vacancy defect at cryogenic temperatures. This establishes a new, potent
Image © Quantum Zeitgeist
Element Six and Orbray have advanced their partnership to enable volume production of wafer-scale single crystal diamond, successfully establishing a reproducible process for 3-inch wafers. This development represents progress in size, uniformity, and manufacturability compared to conventional singl
Image © Quantum Zeitgeist
Research, commercial and investment relationships, by year. Partners with a profile here are linked.
IonQ Research 2025
De Beers Group Strategic 1946
Chosen by shared specialisms, then location and type.
Company · Nottingham · 3 shared specialisms
Company · Southampton · 3 shared specialisms
Company · Glasgow · 3 shared specialisms
Company · Edinburgh · 3 shared specialisms
Company data from Entangled Future. News from Quantum Zeitgeist. Last checked 2 October 2026.
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