The company EuQlid has emerged from stealth with its “Qu-MRI” platform, a diamond-based quantum scanning tool designed to inspect semiconductors and batteries with unprecedented non-destructive precision. At its heart, the scanner employs synthetic diamonds embedded with nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers that serve as ultra-sensitive magnetometers. These sensors detect minute magnetic fields generated by electrical currents flowing through the internal layers of chips, thus enabling a full 3D map of buried current paths without slicing or destroying the device, tells Tom’s Hardware.
EuQlid claims the device reaches nano-amp sensitivity and can handle micron-level spatial resolution. Unlike conventional inspection tools, such as destructive cross-sectioning or scanning electron microscopy, the Qu-MRI enables in-line, high-throughput scanning of advanced 3D-packaged chips and stacked interconnects (e.g., high-bandwidth memory).
The business case is compelling. As chips adopt ever more complex 3D architectures, backside power delivery and advanced interconnects, defects hidden deep beneath surfaces become a major yield and reliability risk. EuQlid estimates the global metrology and inspection tools market already exceeds U.S.$10 billion annually, and sees its technology helping foundries save “billions” by catching faults earlier and avoiding costly physical teardown. The startup has already secured U.S.$3 million in funding and more than U.S.$1.5 million in early revenue.
Quantum sensing, a field often confined to labs, is now being applied to mainstream semiconductor manufacturing. That means inspection workflows can shift from “see what is visible” to “sense what is hidden,” from surface to depth. As chip geometry scales down and interconnect density climbs up, tools such as Qu-MRI may become essential in enabling next-gen node production and reliability.
In short, EuQlid’s platform signals a new chapter in industrial metrology where quantum-diamond sensors move from niche research into the fab.