Meet Thue – New PhD in Theory and Simulation
Thue has been at NQCP since September 2023. He’s now stepping into a new role as a PhD student in our Theory and Simulation Group. We caught up with him to ask a few questions about his team and project.
What is Theory and Simulation (T&S) in the context of quantum computing?
Well, Theory is translating reality into equations, and Simulation is trying to solve them ahead of time; prior to going nuts in the laboratory. The T&S group is supposed to help with the planning and the blueprints for other teams - if the result matches expectations, we’ve done a good job. If it doesn’t, we go back to the drawing board and improve our understanding for next time.
What is your PhD project about?
Starting off, my project will be about designing various superconducting circuits to hit certain target values. For instance, if the Algorithms and Applications group says that a certain configuration of qubits is desirable, and our readout experts want certain resonance frequencies and certain coupling constants, I will be drawing up the electrical diagram that hits these targets. Eventually, I will be developing new approaches to simulation, and hopefully contributing to novel ways and methods of understanding quantum computers.
Why did you decide to do a PhD at NQCP?
As a kid, I went back and forth on different interests, but I always asked lots of questions. In fact, I asked so many questions that my parents gave up and told me to go bother my teachers instead. I quickly found that physics was the subject that had the most answers, and I also found that scientific research is what you must do when nobody can answer your questions anymore.
I have been part of NQCP since we could all fit in a handful of offices, and now we are a large group of fun and ambitious people, filling up several buildings. It's exciting to be part of that journey at the forefront of Quantum Computing research.
Thank you for taking time to chat Thue! Great to have you.