Quantum Dots Technology For Greenhouse Growers

This is Tim Hammerich of the Ag Information Network with your Farm of the Future Report.

UbiQD, a quantum materials company with a focus on agriculture, has secured its Series B funding to accelerate its expansion as the U.S. leader in quantum dots. These quantum dots are used in greenhouses to optimize light for plant growth and productivity.

McDaniel… “ Plants respond very strongly to color and light. I mean, it's the power supply for photosynthesis, but they don't absorb all the colors equally. That's part of the reason why plants look green, and you can kind of get a hint from horticulture lighting. There's only certain colors that those lights are offered in, and that's just because the plants are more efficiently growing under certain colors. And so this technology started to look very interesting from an agricultural optimization perspective.”

That’s UbiQD founder Hunter McDaniel. He says these quantum dots are embedded in a polymer film on a greenhouse roof can tune the spectrum of light for healthier plants and more productivity.

McDaniel… “ The peak of photosynthetic efficiency is about 600 nanometers, which is orange. So if you give plants more orange light, they'll actually grow more vigorously. You can actually use spectrum other ways to tune the morphology of the plant or promote flowering and fruiting. It's kind of a way to dial in plant responses, and so we embed that material into basically the facade of the greenhouse.”

UbiQD is currently expanding to more greenhouse growers and manufacturers.