Abstract: Building quantum devices from the bottom-up hinges on requirements that are at odds with each other: We require that the constituent qubits are both protected and isolated from the environment; yet at the same time we must be able to control them rapidly, to implement logic. In this talk, I will give an overview of how my group at UIUC is addressing this challenge with modular, superconducting and hybrid quantum circuits.
For one, we are developing highly coherent modules based on memories implemented in superconducting cavities and solid-state spin ensembles and develop control circuits that aim to significantly lower control error rates.
Second, we aim to connect such modules to form larger quantum networks. To this end, we develop interconnects that enable us to perform gates between individual modules, and to distribute and stabilize entanglement between them.
I will discuss both the physical principles of how we design the controllable interactions that are the foundation of our work, as well as prospects and challenges for realizing scalable architectures.
Bio: Wolfgang Pfaff received his PhD in Applied Physics from Delft University of Technology (Netherlands) in 2013, under the supervision of Ronald Hanson. His graduate work focused mainly on the quantum control, measurement, and entanglement of individual spins of Nitrogen Vacancy centers, resulting in the first-ever demonstration of deterministic quantum teleportation between distant qubits. Following his graduation, Pfaff joined the lab of Rob Schoelkopf at Yale, where he worked on highly coherent superconducting cavities as quantum memories, and pioneered protocols for distributing quantum information between superconducting devices. Pfaff joined Microsoft Quantum in 2017, using his expertise in superconducting quantum devices to investigate how future, topologically protected qubits can be measured and controlled. He joined the Physics department at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in Fall 2020 to set up his own lab focusing on superconductiong and hybrid quantum circuits, and in particular on how to scale them.
To watch online, go to the IQUIST YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCzAySwQXF8J4kRolUzg2ww