Perform your Masters research project or internship in the EFEQT network

Location: IPCMS, University of Strasbourg, France Contact person: Dr. Guillaume Schull Group website: STM Group

Description: The objective of this internship is to characterize the emission statistics of single chromophore molecules acting as quantum-photon sources (SPSs). SPSs are systems capable of emitting photons one by one and are of major importance for quantum-information science and applications. Many fundamental questions related to the impact of their environment on their quantum properties remain to be explored. To this end, a novel nanophotonic approach based on a scanning probe microscope will be used that provides simultaneous spatial, spectral and temporal resolution. This project fits into the larger framework of the European ERC project APOGEE within the STM team of the IPCMS and may be pursue by a PhD project

Prerequisite knowledge: The candidate should have knowledge’s in light-matter interactions and/or condensed mater physics.
Internship period and planned duration: 4-6 months

Location:University of Heidelberg, Germany Contact person Dr. Martin Gärttner Group website: Many-Body Quantum Dynamics

Description: Disordered spin systems fail to relax to thermal equilibrium state due to emergent local conserved quantities. Rydberg quantum simulators allow to realize these systems experimentally. The goal of this project is to design and numerically benchmark experimental protocols that reveal smoking gun signatures of localization and allow us to study the transition between localized and delocalized regimes.

Prerequisite knowledge: Solid knowledge of quantum mechanics, Python or Julia programming skills, Optional: Basic knowledge of quantum many-body physics, quantum information theory
Internship period and planned duration: 3 months between February and October 2022

Location: University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands Contact person: Prof. Rene Gerritsma Group website: Hybrid atom-ion Quantum Systems

Description: Hybrid experiments combining trapped ions with ultracold atoms offer intriguing prospects for buffer gas cooling, quantum simulation of condensed matter/many-body systems as well as for state-to-state quantum chemistry. Combining both atoms and ions is not a trivial task, yet in our experimental system consisting of an Yb-ion in a bath of lithium atoms we have been able to reach the regime where quantum effects emerge. In this project, you will work on the implementation of an additional cooling step for the Yb-ion, which will cool it closer to the ions’ groundstate. Then, using resolved sideband spectroscopy on the S1/2 ↔ D5/2 quadrupole transition you will characterize the newly achieved temperatures of the ion and answer the question, how much colder it is. This new feature will help to create a cold atom-ion system close to the s-wave regime.

Prerequisite knowledge: Atomic physics, affinity with experiments and working with lasers
Internship period and planned duration:Winter/Spring 2022, 4-6 months

Location: IPCMS, University of Strasbourg, France Contact person: Prof. Paul-Antoine Hervieux, Prof. Mario Ruben Group website: Theoretical quantum dynamics of nano objects

Description: This project forms part of a collaboration with chemists and experimentalists in Karlsruhe, with the aim of realising quantum computing applications using single molecule magnets. Specifically, we focus on the theoretical modelling of higher-dimensional qudits that arise from the nuclear spins of rare-earth atoms embedded in these molecules. The objective of this internship is to make the link between the pulse-level Hamiltonian and the matrix formalism of qudit gates, in order to assist with the experimental implementation of quantum algorithms.

Prerequisite knowledge: Good knowledge of Python and/or Mathematica and/or Matlab, good knowledge of linear algebra, quantum mechanics (ideally, but not strictly required, density matrix formalism and Louiville equations)
Internship period and planned duration:March to August for 6 month internships, anywhere in between for shorter internships

Location: ISIS, University of Strasbourg, France Contact person: Dr. Johannes Schachenmayer Group website: Quantum Matter Theory

Description: Matrix Product States (MPS) are a numerical technique that allow to efficiently simulate dynamics of quantum systems of 100s of qubits in scenarios where quantum entanglement is limited (e.g. by noise). So far, MPS techniques are optimized for simulating Hamiltonian dynamics, i.e. for simulating physics. Goal of this project is to test and compare MPS methods for simulating quantum circuits. The intern should produce an MPS circuit simulation code that takes quantum circuits written in a common quantum language (e.g. QISKIT) as input.

Prerequisite knowledge: Strong knowledge in code development (ideally: Julia), Basics of open quantum systems
Internship period and planned duration:5 months (flexible)

Location: ISIS, University of Strasbourg, France Contact person: Prof. Shannon Whitlock Group website: Exotic Quantum Matter

Description: The objective of this internship is to start to integrate a new control program for our state-of-the art quantum simulator based on Rydberg atoms which will enable continuous feedback control of experimental parameters. The student will (i) develop an overall framework for experimental control based on the labscript suite (https://labscriptsuite.org/) and interface it with python based machine learning and quantum control toolboxes, (ii) develop modules for controlling key components such as the acousto-optical modulators and microwave fields for manipulating qubits, and (iii) demonstrate coherent control over atomic qubits using automatically optimized control waveforms via a high-level (remote) interface.

Prerequisite knowledge: Python programming. Some knowledge of experimental control and automation systems would be beneficial.
Internship period and planned duration: 4-6 months between February and October 2022

Location: QuantFi, Paris, France Contact person: Jeremy Nusa Group website: quantfi.com

Description: Recently developed atomic quantum computation/simulation platforms allow to naturally realize Ising Hamiltonians using Rydberg interactions. Ising Hamiltonians with arbitrarily tunable couplings between qubits would allow to convert portfolio optimization problems into ground state preparation (e.g. quantum annealing) problems. Due to their physical nature, Rydberg interactions naturally decay as a function of distance and thus the coupling matrices depend on the spatial atomic configuration. The goal of this project is to find spatial atomic configurations that can best approximate Ising matrices for portfolio optimization in finance.

Prerequisite knowledge: Linear algebra. Familiarity with a programming language. Ideally: Familiarity with quantum annealing/adiabatic quantum computation
Internship period and planned duration: Approximately 6 months (starting April 2022)

Location: University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands Contact person: Prof. Rene Gerritsma Group website: Hybrid atom-ion Quantum Systems

Description: Hybrid experiments combining trapped ions with ultracold atoms offer intriguing prospects for buffer gas cooling, quantum simulation of condensed matter/many-body systems as well as for state-to-state quantum chemistry. Combining both atoms and ions is not a trivial task, yet in our experimental system consisting of an Yb-ion in a bath of lithium atoms we have been able to reach the regime where quantum effects emerge. For tuning interactions in our Yb+-Li setup, it is important to have spin polarized samples of Lithium in one of the three lowest Zeeman spin states. In this project you will work on creating these samples by implementing purification steps after the evaporation stage where we end up with a Li mixture consisting of the two lowest Zeeman spin states. You will align, program, and characterize resonant laser pulses which remove unwanted spin states. To ensure the frequency of these pulses you will build-up a modulation transfer spectroscopy setup to lock the laser. Furthermore, you will work with RF pulses in order to transfer population between the different spin states.

Prerequisite knowledge: Atomic physics, affinity with experiments and working with lasers
Internship period and planned duration:Winter/Spring 2022, 4-6 months

Location: University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands Contact person: Prof. Florian Schreck and Dr. Francesca Famà Group website: iqClock.eu Lab tour video,Quantum Science Seminar talk describing project

Description: Simulation of the acoustic isolation stack of the machine in the iqClock lab in Amsterdam. Direct measurement on the machine to validate the simulations. Design of a lock for the superradiant cavity inside the machine that optimally supresses environmental noise.

Prerequisite knowledge: Enthusiasm and curiosity about research. Previous experience with COMSOL/Solidworks/Matlab is welcome.
Internship period and planned duration:Flexible start (from April 2022), duration 3 – 6 months

Location: ICUBE, Strasbourg, France Contact person: Prof. Pierre Collet Group website: CSTB group

Description: Optimization is a transdisciplinary research topic, with applications in all possible domains. Most real-world optimisation problems are “hard”, meaning that global optimum for such problems cannot be found in practical time using conventional computers or deterministic algorithms. One way to tackle these problems is to take advantage of the emergence that complex systems exhibit, as a side-effect of the interaction of many different entities. This is exactly what entanglement is about. The object of this internship is therefore to study how the emergent properties of entanglement can be used to find good solutions to compute intensive hard optimization problems.

Prerequisite knowledge: Good knowledge of algorithmics, Python or C++ programming, a good understanding of the principles of emergence in complex systems.
Internship period and planned duration: March to August for 6 months internships, May to July for 2 months internships.

Location:University of Heidelberg, Germany Contact person Prof. Matthias Weidemüller Group website: Quantum Dynamics group

Description: A key feature for experiments simulating quantum spin systems is the tunability of the nature of the interaction between the spins. We use laser-cooled Rydberg atoms to implement such a tunable spin system by periodic application of specific sequences of short microwave pulses. This allows us to engineer interaction Hamiltonians with different symmetries in order to investigate how spin transport is affected by these symmetries. The goal of this project is to implement the protocol for generating the corresponding pulses and electric fields needed to study spin transport.

Prerequisite knowledge: Knowledge of quantum mechanics, basic knowledge of programming and electronics, experience with cold-atom experiments
Internship period and planned duration: 3 months between February and October 2022

Location: ENS, Paris, France Contact person: Prof. Jakob Reichel Group website: Atom Chips

Description: The subject of this internship is to set up and test a new, robust and sensitive scheme for detecting the state of individual qubit atoms by background-free fluorescence detection. The core idea is that excitation and fluorescence emission occur at different wavelengths so they can be easily separated and the detection is not polluted by scattered excitation light. During this internship the student will be part of a small and highly motivated team in an inspiring international research environment and will have the opportunity to gain experience in optics, lasers, cavities, and cold atom physics.

Prerequisite knowledge: Quantum physics
Internship period and planned duration: 4-6 months (flexible)

Location: ENS, Paris, France Contact person: Prof. Jakob Reichel Group website: Atom Chips

Description: The subject of this internship is to set up a trace gas detector based on a FFP (Fiber Fabry Perot) cavity, test it with different methods of cavity-enhanced spectroscopy. This will provide a proof of principle test of FFP trace gas detectors. Depending on progress, it will yield valuable information about the achievable detection limit and the properties of FFP gas detectors compared to existing technologies. During this internship the student will be part of a small and highly motivated team in an inspiring international research environment and will have the opportunity to gain experience in optics, lasers, cavities, spectroscopy and project management.

Prerequisite knowledge: Quantum physics
Internship period and planned duration: 4-6 months (flexible)

Location: Karlsruhe Institute for Technology (KIT), Germany Contact person: Prof. Markus Garst Group website: Research Group Garst

Description: The interplay of different degrees of freedom of electrons in solids and the interactions between them lead to a rich phenomenology of collective effects. We develop methods for simulating such systems with goal of understanding collective phenomena and designing quantum materials. Please contact us to learn more about concrete internship projects.

Prerequisite knowledge: Solid knowledge of quantum mechanics, Programming skills and knowledge of condensed matter physics are advantageous
Internship period and planned duration: 3 months between February and October 2022

Location: University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands Contact person: Dr. Arghavan Safavi-Naini Group website: Hybrid atom-ion Quantum Systems

Description: Spin Hamiltonians are the cornerstone of the description of combinatorial optimization run on quantum computers, of magnetic materials or as fundamental objects in the studies of quantum integrability, chaos and transport. Putting such spin Hamiltonians on a so-called hyperbolic lattice, as suggested by recent experiments using superconducting resonators, would allow for exciting possibilities of studying exotic phases of matter on curved spacetimes with negative curvature (such as the anti-de Sitter spacetime used in the celebrated AdS/CFT correspondence) and recent progress in engineering spin Hamiltonians with arbitrary interactions in trapped ions offers an exciting opening to address these issues experimentally. The project consists of two parts: 1) Identifying through multidimensional optimization the relevant experimental setup to realize hyperbolic spin Hamiltonians. 2) Studying the physics of frustrated spin Hamiltonians on curved spacetimes using both analytical and numerical approaches, such as the path integral quantum Monte-Carlo simulations.

Prerequisite knowledge: quantum physics, affinity with quantum computing and simulation
Internship period and planned duration:Winter/Spring 2022, 4-6 months

Location: Quantum Machines, Tel Aviv, Israel Contact person: Dr. Gal Winer Group website: Quantum Machines

Description: Developing Quantum Computing Protocols together with our quantum experts, for a specific qubit platform, in QM’s pulse-level language QUA. The specific protocols will be chosen according to the knowledge of the intern and will be used by QM’s community of customers.

Prerequisite knowledge: BSc in physics. Experience in an experimental physics lab from the fields of quantum computation or quantum information.
Internship period and planned duration: 3-6 months

Location: University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands Contact person: Prof. Florian Schreck and Dr. Francesca Famà Group website: iqClock.eu Lab tour video,Quantum Science Seminar talk describing project

Description: Design and construction of a compact optical system aimed at providing beams for: transversal cooling of atoms, pumping sequence and lock of a superradiant laser and cavity. The task is flexible and adaptable to the student, with the possibility to concentrate more on different aspects. Tasks are design of the laser beam distribution system (using programs like Solidworks), construction of injection-locked diode lasers with 461nm/689nm/707nm ​wavelength (with related electronics), data analysis with Python/Matlab.

Prerequisite knowledge: Enthusiasm and curiosity about research. Any previous experience with optics/electronics is welcome.
Internship period and planned duration:Flexible start (from April 2022), duration 5 – 6 months

Location: Quantum Machines, Tel Aviv, Israel Contact person: Dr. Gal Winer Group website: Quantum Machines

Description: Participants will take part in developing an open system to coordinate and analyze complex experiments involving multiple qubits. This includes developing unique and performant software infrastructure for experimentation, calibration, and data collection. 

Prerequisite knowledge: Background in python programming or similar and enjoy programming
Internship period and planned duration: 3-6 months

Location: Quantum Machines, Tel Aviv, Israel Contact person: Dr. Gal Winer Group website: Quantum Machines

Description: Participants will take part in developing the quantum compilation software stack, including researching compilation algorithms and hybrid quantum algorithms (i.e., Variational Quantum Eigensolver, Quantum Approximate Optimization Algorithm). The compilation targets Quantum Machines’ control system and pulse level language, QUA.

Prerequisite knowledge: Ability to study complex algorithms and tools, through reading state of the art papers. Moreover, candidates should be able to implement algorithms and integrate open source tools
Internship period and planned duration: 3-6 months

Location: Thales Alenia Space, Toulouse, France Contact person: Dr. Laurent De Forges De Parny Group website: Thales Group

Description: The proposed project falls within the theme of quantum cryptography, or Quantum Key Distribution (QKD), which will allow users to encrypt their communications with unconditional security. These cryptography keys are established by exploiting the properties of quantum optics (superposition of quantum states, non-cloning theorem). The aim of this internship is to study the overall performance of different types of constellations. You will use a powerful digital simulation tool developed by the team to conduct this study.

Prerequisite knowledge: 2nd year Master. Internship experience in optics or space and knowledge of quantum optics or free space optical communications would be advantageous
Internship period and planned duration: 5 Months from January/February