Episode Overview

Join Sebastian Hassinger in conversation with Deeya Viradia, a Gen Z voice and rising researcher in the quantum computing field. Deeya discusses her multifaceted journey—from early inspiration and undergraduate research to hackathons, quantum clubs, and her ambitions in commercialization. This episode is packed with resources, perspectives on education, and advice for newcomers in quantum technology.

Key Topics & Highlights

Deeya’s Quantum Origin Story

• Inspired by curiosity and early science exposure—especially an episode of "Martha Speaks" with Neil deGrasse Tyson—which led to an ongoing passion for exploring the unknown, from astronomy to quantum computing.
• Found her quantum footing through engineering physics at UC Berkeley and participation in the IBM Qiskit Summer School.

Building a Quantum Resume

• Gained diverse hands-on experience with UC Berkeley’s Quantum Devices Group, SLAC (Stanford Linear Accelerator Center), the DoD Quantum Entanglement and Space Technologies (QuEST) Lab, and multiple quantum hackathons (MIT iQuHack Hack, Yale's Y Quantum).
• Emphasizes the breadth of opportunity for undergraduates—advocates for involvement in hackathons and clubs, even without prior quantum experience.

Theory vs. Experiment, and Academia vs. Industry

• Challenges traditional boundaries, advocating for integration: understanding both the experimental physics and the theoretical/algorithmic sides of quantum.
• Describes work at SLAC: optimizing readout for superconducting qubits, working with dilution fridges, and collaborating across national labs and Stanford.

Student Community & Entrepreneurial Drive

• Founded Q-BIT at Berkeley, a club focused on quantum computing applications and industry connections.
• Active in Berkeley’s entrepreneurship community, driven to explore how quantum research moves from lab to commercial product.

Commercialization and the Future of Quantum

• Discusses the uncertain but promising path to quantum’s economic value, highlighting interdisciplinary collaboration, communication, and cross-sector engagement.
• Strong advocate for students and non-technical communities alike to take risks, reach out, and jump into the field—because quantum needs diverse perspectives and no one knows exactly where it’s headed!

Resources Mentioned

• IBM Quantum education resources
• IBM Quantum blog - where the summer camp will be announced
• MIT iQuHack
• Yale’s Y Quantum
• Unitary Foundation
• Q-Ctrl Black Opal
• Q-BIT at Berkeley
• Qubit by Qubit
• National Q-12 Education Partnership
• IEEE Quantum Week
• UC Berkeley Quantum Devices Group
• SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
• Entrepreneurs @ Berkeley

This episode of The New Quantum Era podcast, your host, Sebastian Hassinger, has a conversation with Dr. Charlotte Bøttcher, Assistant Professor, Stanford University. Dr. Bøttcher is an experimental physicist working with superconducting quantum devices, and shares with us her areas of focus and perspective on this critical area of materials research for quantum information science and technology.

Episode Highlights

• Meet Dr. Charlotte Bøttcher: Dr. Bøttcher shares her journey from Harvard (PhD) and Yale (postdoc with Michel Devoret) to launching her own experimental quantum materials group at Stanford. She discusses the excitement (and challenges) of building a new research lab from scratch.
• Hybrid Quantum Material Systems: The heart of the conversation centers on hybrid systems combining superconductors (aluminum) with semiconductors (indium arsenide). These materials pave the way for:
  • Tunable and switchable superconductivity—the foundation for switchable quantum devices and potential advances in quantum information technology.
  • Probing unconventional and topological superconductors, with implications for fundamental physics and exotic quantum states.
• Applications in Quantum Computing:
  • Superconductivity plays a crucial role not only in qubits themselves but also in creating tunable couplers between qubits, allowing for controlled entanglement and reduced crosstalk.
  • High-Tc superconductors (those with high critical temperatures) are discussed, including their complex, often disordered behavior—and their challenges and potential in qubit applications.
• Quantum Simulation and Sensing: Dr. Bøttcher describes her group’s efforts to use devices for simulating complex many-body quantum systems, including both bosonic and fermionic Hamiltonians. Quantum devices are also used for quantum sensing—detecting magnetic fields, charge, or collective modes in exotic materials (such as uranium-based superconductors).
• Controlling Disorder: The episode explores how adjusting electron carrier density can expose or screen disorder in materials, enabling the study of its effects on quantum properties.
• Building a New Lab: Charlotte highlights the rewarding process of establishing her own experimental lab and mentoring the next generation of quantum scientists.
• Fundamental Science vs. Application: Dr. Bøttcher emphasizes the synergy between foundational quantum research and technological development—the pursuit of basic understanding feeds directly into better qubits and devices, which in turn open new avenues for exploring quantum phenomena.
• Future Directions: Looking ahead, her group aims to develop new superconducting qubits capable of operating at higher temperatures and frequencies, expand their quantum simulation platforms, and continue collaborations with Yale and others. The quest for phenomena like Majorana fermions and the exploration of topological phases remain part of her group’s broader experimental frontier.

Key Quotes
“Combining superconductors and semiconductors gives us not just new functionality for quantum technology but also lets us explore fundamental questions about exotic states of matter.” – Charlotte Bøttcher
“Building a lab from scratch is a lot of work, but every day is exciting. Working with students and starting new experiments is incredibly rewarding.” – Charlotte Bøttcher

Tune in for a deep dive into hybrid materials, quantum simulation, and the inner workings of a cutting-edge quantum materials lab at Stanford!
For more episodes: Visit newquantumera.com

Thanks to the American Physical Society (APS) for supporting this episode.

In this episode of The New Quantum Era, host Sebastian Hassinger sits down with Dr. Mark Saffman, a leading expert in atomic physics and quantum information science. As a professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and Chief Scientist at Infleqtion (formerly ColdQuanta), Mark is at the forefront of developing neutral atom quantum computing platforms using Rydberg atom arrays. The conversation explores the past, present, and future of neutral atom quantum computing, its scalability, technological challenges, and opportunities for hybrid quantum systems.

Key Topics

• Evolution of Neutral Atom Quantum Computing
  The history and development of Rydberg atom arrays, key technological breakthroughs, and the trajectory from early experiments to today’s platforms capable of large-scale qubit arrays.
• Gate Fidelity and Scalability
  Advances in gate fidelity, challenges in reducing laser noise, and the inherent scalability advantages of the neutral atom platform.
• Error Correction and Logical Qubits
  Discussion of error detection/correction, logical qubit implementation, code distances, and the engineering required for repeated error correction in neutral atom systems.
• Synergy Between Academia and Industry
  The interplay between curiosity-driven university research and focused engineering efforts at Infleqtion, including the collaborative benefits of cross-pollination.
• Hybrid Quantum Systems and Future Directions
  Potential for integrating different modalities, including hybrid systems, quantum communication, and quantum sensors, as well as modularity in scaling quantum processors.

Key Insights

• Neutral atom arrays have achieved remarkable scalability, with demonstrations of arrays containing thousands of atomic qubits—well-positioned for large-scale quantum computing compared to other modalities.
• Advancements in laser technology and gate protocols have been crucial for improving gate fidelities, moving from early diode lasers to more stabilized, lower noise systems.
• Engineering challenges remain, such as atom loss, measurement speed, and the need for technologies enabling fast, high-degree-of-freedom optical reconfiguration.
• Logical qubit implementation is advancing, but practical, repeated rounds of error correction and syndrome measurement are required for fault-tolerant computing.
• Collaboration between university and industry labs accelerates both foundational understanding and the translation of discoveries into real-world devices.

Notable Quotes

1. “One of the exciting things about the Neutral Atom platform is that this is perhaps the most scalable platform that exists.”
2. “Atoms make fantastic qubits — they’re nature’s qubits, all identical, excellent coherence… but they do have some sort of annoying features. They don’t stick around forever. We have atom loss.”
3. “Our wiring is not electronic printed circuits, it’s laser beams propagating in space… That’s great because it’s reconfigurable in real time.”

About the Guest

Mark Saffman is a Professor of Physics at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the Chief Scientist at Infleqtion, a company leading the commercial development of quantum technology platforms using neutral atoms. Mark is recognized for his pioneering work on Rydberg atom arrays, quantum logic gates, and advancing scalable quantum processors. His interdisciplinary experience bridges fundamental science and quantum tech commercialization.

Keywords: quantum computing, Rydberg atoms, neutral atom arrays, Mark Saffman, Infleqtion, gate fidelity, scalability, quantum error correction, logical qubits, hybrid quantum systems, laser cooling, quantum communication, quantum sensors, quantum advantage, optical links, atomic physics, quantum technology, academic-industry collaboration.

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In this episode of The New Quantum Era, your host, Sebastian Hassinger sits down with Dr. Yvonne Gao, a leading experimental physicist specializing in superconducting devices and quantum cavities. Recorded at the American Physical Society's Global Summit, the conversation explores the intersection of curiosity-driven research and technological advancement in quantum physics.

Key Topics Discussed

1. Research Focus: Quantum Cavities and Superposition

• Dr. Gao shares her team's work on using cavities (harmonic oscillators) coupled with a single qubit to probe fundamental quantum effects.
• The experiments focus on quantum superposition and entanglement using minimal hardware—just one qubit and one cavity—eschewing the race for more qubits in favor of deeper scientific insights.
• Discussion of "cat states" as iconic demonstrations of quantum superposition, and how their properties can be engineered for robustness and sensitivity without specialized hardware.

2. Experimental Innovation

• The team investigates loss mechanisms in cavity-based quantum states and explores ways to make these states more resilient through state engineering rather than hardware changes.
• Dr. Gao describes using standard, "vanilla" qubits and cavities, making their techniques accessible to other labs.

3. Fundamental Questions and Quantum Playground

• Dr. Gao emphasizes the value of the circuit QED platform as a "playground" for exploring quantum phenomena, particularly entanglement and its quantification in real hardware.
• The challenge of visualizing and intuitively understanding quantum phenomena is highlighted, with experiments designed to make abstract concepts more tangible.

4. Device Fabrication and Advancements

• Dr. Gao's lab at NUS has developed in-house fabrication capabilities, gradually building up expertise and infrastructure.
• The field is witnessing rapid improvements in device performance, driven by advances in materials science and process integration.

5. Multipartite Entanglement and Future Directions

• Plans for multi-cavity devices: Moving from single and two-cavity systems to three, enabling the study of tripartite entanglement and richer quantum dynamics.
• The potential for these systems to serve as both research tools and pedagogical aids, demonstrating quantum strangeness in a hands-on way.

6. Synergy Between Science and Technology

• The conversation explores the unique moment in quantum research where fundamental science and technological objectives are closely aligned.
• Knowledge flows both ways: curiosity-driven experiments inform processor design, while industrial advances in fabrication and control benefit academic labs.

7. The "Perfect Quantum Lab" Thought Experiment

• Dr. Gao shares her wish list for a hypothetical, fault-tolerant quantum computer: to directly observe textbook quantum phenomena and simulate complex quantum behaviors in a tangible way.

Memorable Quotes

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In this episode, your host Sebastian Hassinger sits down with Andrew Houck to explore the latest advancements and collaborative strategies in quantum computing. Houck shares insights from his leadership roles at both Princeton and the Center for Co-Design of Quantum Advantage (C2QA), focusing on how interdisciplinary efforts are pushing the boundaries of coherence times, materials science, and scalable quantum architectures. The conversation covers the importance of co-design across the quantum stack, the challenges and surprises in improving qubit performance, and the vision for the next era of quantum research.

KEY TOPICS DISCUSSED

• Mission of C2QA:
  The central goal is to build the components necessary to move beyond the NISQ (Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum) era into fault-tolerant quantum computing. This requires integrating expertise in materials, devices, software, error correction, and architecture to ensure compatibility and progress at every level.
• Materials Breakthroughs:
  Houck discusses the surprising impact of using tantalum in superconducting qubits, which has significantly reduced surface losses compared to other metals. He explains the ongoing quest to identify and mitigate sources of decoherence, such as two-level systems (TLSs) and interface defects.
• Co-Design Philosophy:
  The episode delves into two types of co-design:
  • Vertical co-design: Aligning advances in materials, devices, error correction, and architecture to optimize the full quantum computing stack.
  • Cross-platform co-design: Bridging ideas and techniques across different qubit modalities and even across disciplines, such as applying methods from quantum sensing to quantum computing.
• Error Correction Innovations:
  Houck highlights breakthroughs like using GKP states for error correction, which have achieved performance beyond the break-even point, thanks to improvements in materials and device design.
• Bosonic Modes and Custom Architectures:
  The conversation touches on leveraging native bosonic modes in hardware to simulate field theories more efficiently, potentially saving vast computational resources. Houck discusses the trade-offs between general-purpose and custom quantum circuits in the current era of limited qubit counts.
• Modular Quantum Computing:
  As quantum systems scale, the focus is shifting to modular architectures. Houck outlines the challenges of connecting modules—such as chip-to-chip coupling and optimizing connectivity for error correction and algorithms.
• Institutional Collaboration:
  Houck contrasts the long-term, foundational investment at Princeton with the national, multi-institutional mission of C2QA. He emphasizes the unique strengths universities, industry, and national labs each bring to quantum research, and the importance of fostering collaboration across these sectors.
• Looking Ahead:
  The next phase for C2QA will incorporate advances in neutral atom quantum computing and diamond-based quantum sensing, while ramping down some networking efforts. Houck also reflects on the broader scientific and practical motivations driving quantum information science, and the fundamental questions that large-scale quantum systems may help answer.

NOTABLE QUOTES

“There’s a quasi-infinite number of ways that you can mess up coherence… If you’re really only using one number, you’ll never know.”

“Some of the best ideas we have are taking approaches from one field and bringing them to another. That’s what we call cross-platform co-design.”

“A million-qubit quantum computer is basically a cat… as you build these systems up, you can start to really ask: do we actually understand quantum mechanics as it turns into these macroscopically large objects?”

RESOURCES & MENTIONS

• Center for Co-Design of Quantum Advantage (C2QA)
• Princeton Quantum Initiative

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In this episode of The New Quantum Era, Sebastian is joined by Dr. Emily Edwards, a co-founder of the Q12 initiative, an NSF-funded effort aimed at enhancing quantum science education from middle school through early undergraduate levels. Emily brings her expertise in organizing and motivating educators, as well as her passion for science communication. In this episode, we delve into the unique challenges of teaching quantum science and explore effective strategies to make this abstract field more accessible to learners of all ages.

Key Points

• Challenges in Quantum Communication and Education: Emily discusses the public perception of quantum science, often influenced by pop culture, and the importance of demystifying the subject to make it more approachable.
• Strategies for Formal and Informal Learning: The conversation highlights different techniques for teaching quantum science in formal settings, like schools, and informal settings, such as science museums or YouTube. Emily emphasizes the importance of foundational knowledge and incremental learning.
• Role of Technology in Quantum Education: Emily talks about using scanning electron microscopes and other technologies to make the invisible world of quantum science visible, thus igniting public interest and imagination similar to stargazing.
• Importance of Science Communication Workshops: Emily shares her experience in leading science communication workshops, aiming to improve the accuracy and effectiveness of science content created by the public.
• Public and Private Sector Collaboration: The discussion touches on the need for a blend of federal and private funding to sustain and scale quantum education initiatives. Emily stresses the importance of industry involvement to emphasize the urgency and importance of scientific literacy for the future workforce.