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Dilution refrigerators: cooling qubits to 10 millikelvin

See how a dilution refrigerator cools qubits to about 10 millikelvin, who builds them, which makers are listed, and what shipments and lead times show.

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The dilution unit. In the mixing chamber, helium-3 crossing from a concentrated into a dilute phase absorbs heat; the still above evaporates it off, and heat exchangers of sintered silver precool the returning stream.

How does a dilution refrigerator reach 10 millikelvin?

In stages. A pulse-tube cryocooler cools the upper plates to a few kelvin; Bluefors lists its jobs as pre-cooling the dilution insert, cooling the radiation shields, pre-cooling the helium-3 and heat-sinking the wiring. The dilution unit does the rest: in the mixing chamber, helium-3 crossing from a concentrated phase into a dilute phase in helium-4 absorbs heat, and the still above it evaporates helium-3 so that pumps can circulate it back. Each stage has far less cooling power than the one above. ETH Zurich measured about 30 W at 45 K on its refrigerator’s first stage, 1.5 W at 4.2 K, 40 mW at 1.2 K on the still, 200 µW at 140 mK on the cold plate and 19 µW at 20 mK on the mixing chamber, which reached 6 mK when empty. Older wet refrigerators used large amounts of liquid helium; Nippon Sanso notes that cryogen-free designs now dominate.

Who makes dilution refrigerators, and which makers are listed?

Mostly private specialists. Bluefors of Finland, which owns pulse-tube maker Cryomech, says it has delivered well over 1,700 systems, and Quantum Design Oxford (the former Oxford Instruments NanoScience, bought by privately held Quantum Design on Jan 2, 2026), Maybell, Leiden Cryogenics, Zero Point Cryogenics and ICEoxford are private too. ICV, a market-research firm, estimated in 2025 that Bluefors and Oxford Instruments held more than 70% of the market. The listed makers are ULVAC, whose refrigerator, developed with ULVAC Cryogenics, has cooled the University of Osaka’s all-Japanese superconducting computer since July 28, 2025 and which is developing a model to IBM’s specifications; QuantumCTek, whose ez-Q Fridge F1100 for thousand-qubit machines reaches 8 mK or less; FormFactor, whose benchtop Flatiron reaches 30 mK; Nippon Sanso, which has sold e-Dilution units since 2003; and Air Liquide, which acquired 80% of Cryoconcept in 2020. IQM, a listed quantum-computer maker, says it has an established strategic relationship with Bluefors for its cryogenic systems.

How many are shipped, and how long do they take?

No maker publishes annual output, so running totals are the closest guide. Bluefors installed its 1,000th system in November 2022, said in September 2025 that it had delivered over 1,500 dilution refrigerators, and now cites well over 1,700 systems: roughly 200 a year for the market leader alone, by stock3d’s estimate. It delivered 18 wired systems to Japan’s AIST in 2025, installed in six weeks, and says its preconfigured systems for 5-qubit-scale work reach installation four months after order. Large systems take longer: PostQuantum, a trade publication, lists 6–12 months for a Bluefors XLD1000sl (May 2026). Bluefors says a 2024 expansion in Syracuse, New York, increased capacity by almost 45%. In stock3d’s Scale mode the refrigerator is the first part to tighten, turning amber at about 120 new systems a year and red above about 300; it is a teaching model, not a forecast.

How to research a dilution-refrigerator company

  1. Separate complete refrigerators from the parts inside them. Pulse tubes, pumps, wiring and copper come from other companies (Mitsubishi Materials says its high-purity copper is used in cryogenic-refrigerator components), and a benchtop unit such as FormFactor’s Flatiron serves device testing rather than a full quantum computer.
  2. Match the class to the machine: QuantumCTek sizes its F500 for about 100 qubits and its F1100 and F1500 for about 1,000, and cooling power at 20 mK and plate size separate a research refrigerator from one built for a large processor.
  3. Check ownership: Oxford Instruments no longer makes dilution refrigerators, ULVAC Cryogenics is a 50:50 joint venture of ULVAC and Atlas Copco’s Edwards, Cryomech belongs to private Bluefors, and the current range of Air Liquide’s Cryoconcept was not verified.
  4. Read collaboration wording closely: Rigetti’s agreement lets Quanta Computer develop refrigerators under statements of work, with no delivered unit disclosed, and ULVAC’s IBM-specification model was scheduled for early-2026 deployment that our sources do not confirm.
  5. Check the business mix: FormFactor, ULVAC and Nippon Sanso do not break out cryogenic or quantum sales, and FormFactor’s revenue comes mostly from probe cards.
  6. Use the list as a starting point: it is curated, not exhaustive, and the model is illustrative, not a bill of materials.

Sources

Engineering reference: Dilution refrigerator example. Company-specific evidence is linked from the profiles below.

Explore the complete dilution refrigerator sector · Read the mapping methodology

Related company research

These companies have relevant documented product roles. Open a profile for the source and limitation.

Also in this study (not publicly listed)

  • Bluefors Not publicly listed

    Finnish dilution-refrigerator maker (XLDsl, LD and the KIDE platform for more than 1,000 qubits) that calls itself the world leader in cryogenic cooling systems for quantum technology. It completed its acquisition of US pulse-tube maker Cryomech on Mar 28, 2023, and in Sept 2025 agreed to purchase up to 10,000 liters a year of lunar helium-3 from Interlune for delivery in 2028–2037.

    Source

  • Quantum Design (Quantum Design Oxford) Not publicly listed

    Privately held San Diego instrument maker that completed its acquisition of Oxford Instruments’ NanoScience division on Jan 2, 2026; the business now trades as Quantum Design Oxford and sells Proteox dilution refrigerators (ProteoxLX: below 7 mK, over 25 µW at 20 mK, 530 mm plate).

    Source

  • Maybell Quantum Not publicly listed

    US maker of compact dilution refrigerators (Fast Fridge, Big Fridge) and cryogenic wiring for the quantum industry.

    Source

  • Leiden Cryogenics Not publicly listed

    Dutch maker of dry dilution refrigerators since 1992 (CF-CS110, CF-CS110-XXL, QUPER).

    Source

  • Zero Point Cryogenics Not publicly listed

    Canadian maker of dilution refrigerators for quantum technology; it announced QPU-ready systems with Quantum Machines.

    Source

  • ICEoxford Not publicly listed

    UK maker of dry cryostats and dilution refrigerators, listing quantum computing among its applications.

    Source

  • ULVAC CRYOGENICS Subsidiary of ULVAC (6728.T) and Edwards (Atlas Copco) as a 50:50 joint venture

    Co-developer of ULVAC’s quantum dilution refrigerator; a 50:50 joint venture of ULVAC, Inc. and Edwards Vacuum LLC (Atlas Copco Group) per its company outline, so it is not a wholly owned subsidiary of either. ULVAC’s own listing covers the role.

    Source

  • Cryoconcept Subsidiary of Air Liquide (AI.PA)

    French dilution-refrigerator maker (below 10 mK) spun off from CEA in 2000; Air Liquide acquired 80% in Sept 2020. Its website did not resolve on 2026-09-28, so its current range was not verified.

    Source

  • Cryomech Subsidiary of Bluefors (private)

    Syracuse, New York maker of PT-series pulse-tube cryocoolers (PT205–PT820), Gifford-McMahon cryocoolers, helium compressors and helium liquefiers; its PT310-RM is integrated into Bluefors dilution refrigerators.

    Source