Adelaide physicist wins Clunies Ross award for precision timing technology

Professor Andre Luiten of Adelaide University, who is also chief executive of QuantX Labs, has won the 2026 Clunies Ross Technology Innovation Award. The Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering presented it at a gala dinner in Sydney in late October. The award recognises his work turning precision-timing physics research into deployed technology.

His cryogenic sapphire oscillator, sold as CRYO, offers signal purity and stability up to 1,000 times better than conventional systems. He founded Cryoclock in 2016, later renamed QuantX Labs, after engagement with Defence and BAE Systems. The company now has more than 50 staff and exports worldwide.

QuantX Labs is also developing TEMPO compact atomic clocks, intended to keep accurate timing when satellite positioning signals are jammed, spoofed or lost. Earlier this year it launched its first timing technology into space on a SpaceX mission. Luiten still leads a 21-member research group.

Why it matters: Resilient timing that works without GNSS is increasingly important for positioning, communications and critical infrastructure. Compact atomic clocks like TEMPO address jamming and spoofing risks that affect any user dependent on satellite navigation.