aspuru-list May 2018

aspuru-list@lists.fas.harvard.edu

15 participants
33 discussions

[Aspuru-Guzik Group List] [qip] tomorrow

by Aram Harrow

Dear quanta, Tomorrow at 1:30pm, Adam Bouland will tell us about his recent work on the hardness of random circuit sampling. Another thing happening tomorrow is that the House Energy & Commerce committee will hold a congressional hearing on quantum computing tomorrow, starting at 9:15 AM ET. You can stream it from here: https://energycommerce.house.gov/hearings/disrupter-series-quantum-computin… After talking to a few of you, I suggest we skip the usual group meeting and replace it by getting together in 6-310 to watch this. I don't know how long it will go on for, only that it starts at 9:15. aram _______________________________________________ qip mailing list qip(a)mit.edu http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/qip

5 years, 11 months

[Aspuru-Guzik Group List] Professor John Stanton visiting next Monday

by Teresa Tamayo

Dear all, Professor Stanton from the University of Florida will be visiting Harvard next Monday (May 21st) for THEOCHEM. (https://sites.google.com/ site/stantonresearchgroup/). If you want to meet Prof. Stanton and/or have lunch with him, please let me know. His talk is next Wednesday at MIT, 4:15 pm at MIT in room 4-163, you can find the abstract is below. Best, Tere ------- When: 4:15 Wednesday, May 23rd. Where: MIT building four room 4-163 My Longterm Relationship with a Difficult Molecule John F. Stanton This talk reviews the spectroscopy of the NO3 radical, which is both fascinating for theoreticians as well as an important player in the environment. In particular, the quest to fully understand the spectroscopy of NO3 – which has not yet been achieved – has been a “hobby” of mine for essentially the entirety of my scientific career. I will attempt to present a brief history of the science done on this molecule since 1881 as a contextual frame for my own theoretical efforts to understand its spectra and electronic states. The journey starts during my graduate school days, when I was naive and knew nothing. It continues through current times. While I still don’t know very much, I have learned a lot along the way that I will share with you.

5 years, 11 months

[Aspuru-Guzik Group List] Group meeting, Thu May 17, 3:00 PM, Pfizer

by Ian Kivlichan

Hi all, Instead of our regular group meeting today we'll have Luis Campos' talk in Pfizer at 3 PM. The Department Cook Out is just after that at 4:30 PM, so everyone can head to the Cook Out after the talk :) All the best, Ian

5 years, 11 months

[Aspuru-Guzik Group List] Excitonics Seminar, Luis Campos at Harvard -TODAY- May 17, 3pm

by Catherine M Bourgeois

TODAY!! Please post and forward to your groups. CENTER FOR EXCITONICS SEMINAR SERIES presents: Materials Design for Third Generation Singlet Fission Solar Cells May 17, 2018 at 3pm/Pfizer Lecture Hall- Harvard University Luis Campos Department of Chemistry, Columbia University [http://www.rle.mit.edu/excitonics/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/8939772-300x26…] Organic materials offer a rich palate to be decorated with functional units in order to tune various properties. For example, the ability to generate multiple excitons from a single photon (singlet fission in molecular materials) has the potential to significantly enhance the photocurrent in single-junction solar cells, and thus raise the power conversion efficiency from the Shockley-Queisser limit of 33% to 44%. However, there is a paucity of materials that undergo efficient singlet fission. Our group is interested in designing building blocks that are capable of generating triplet pairs in modular small molecules and polymers. This talk will provide an overview on our approach to the design, synthesis, and evaluation of the materials. Luis M. Campos is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry at Columbia University. He was born in Guadalajara, Mexico, and moved at the age of 11 to Los Angeles, California. He received a B.Sc. in Chemistry from CSU Dominguez Hills in 2001, and a Ph.D. from the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry at UCLA in 2006 working under the supervision of M. A. Garcia-Garibay and K. N. Houk. At UCLA, he was awarded the NSF Predoctoral Fellowship, Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowship, and the Saul & Silvia Winstein Award for his graduate research in solid-state photochemistry. Switching to materials chemistry, he went to UCSB as a UC President's Postdoctoral Fellow to work under the supervision of C. J. Hawker at the Materials Research Laboratory. At Columbia, his group's research interests lie in polymer chemistry, self-assembly, and organic electronic materials. The Center For Excitonics Is An Energy Frontier Research Center Funded By The U.S. Department Of Energy, Office Of Science And Office Of Basic Energy Sciences LIGHT REFRESHMENTS WILL BE SERVED

5 years, 11 months

[Aspuru-Guzik Group List] Fw: CCB Spring Cookout THIS THURSDAY

by Negron, Felixander

Good morning everyone! I will be picking up bracelets for the group today. If you are interested in going to the cookout, please message me on slack and let me know how many you would like. I will drop off bracelets in the war room later today. Best, Felix Felixander Negron Laboratory Administrator Harvard University Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology 12 Oxford St. M 136 Cambridge, MA 02138 ________________________________ From: ccb_staff-bounces(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu <ccb_staff-bounces(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu> on behalf of Anderson, Barbara <banderson(a)chemistry.harvard.edu> Sent: Tuesday, May 15, 2018 11:03:27 AM To: CCB Staff; 'ccb_postdocs(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu'; ccb-gradstudents-list(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu; ccb-faculty-list(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu; #List-CCB-Instructional_Staff; othergradstudents at Chemistry Subject: [CCB_Staff] CCB Spring Cookout THIS THURSDAY From: <ccb_staff-bounces(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu<mailto:ccb_staff-bounces@lists.fas.harvard.edu>> on behalf of "Lennox, Elizabeth A." <elennox(a)fas.harvard.edu<mailto:elennox@fas.harvard.edu>> Date: Monday, May 14, 2018 at 10:02 AM To: "Ccb-faculty-list(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu<mailto:Ccb-faculty-list@lists.fas.harvard.edu>" <Ccb-faculty-list(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu<mailto:Ccb-faculty-list@lists.fas.harvard.edu>>, "Instructional_staff(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu<mailto:Instructional_staff@lists.fas.harvard.edu>" <Instructional_staff(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu<mailto:Instructional_staff@lists.fas.harvard.edu>>, CCB Staff <ccb_staff(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu<mailto:ccb_staff@lists.fas.harvard.edu>>, "Ccb-gradstudents-list(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu<mailto:Ccb-gradstudents-list@lists.fas.harvard.edu>" <Ccb-gradstudents-list(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu<mailto:Ccb-gradstudents-list@lists.fas.harvard.edu>>, othergradstudents at Chemistry <othergradstudents-list(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu<mailto:othergradstudents-list@lists.fas.harvard.edu>>, "Ccb_postdocs(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu<mailto:Ccb_postdocs@lists.fas.harvard.edu>" <Ccb_postdocs(a)lists.fas.harvard.edu<mailto:Ccb_postdocs@lists.fas.harvard.edu>> Subject: [CCB_Staff] CCB Spring Cookout THIS THURSDAY Hello All, Please join your friends, family, and colleagues for our CCB Spring Cookout to celebrate all of our graduates. Details below: When: Thursday, May 17th Time: 4 pm – 7:30 pm start (**start time is 4 pm and not 3 pm, per the most recent newsletter) Where: Bauer/Naito Courtyard Please note, that as usual, bracelets will be needed to get food/beverages at this event. Lab administrators should stop in the CCB main office between now and Thursday at NOON to get the needed number of bracelets for their group. Let’s all hope for good weather! Best, Elizabeth -- Elizabeth A. Lennox, M.B.A. Executive Director/Co-Director of Graduate Studies Chemistry and Chemical Biology Faculty of Arts and Sciences Harvard University elennox(a)fas.harvard.edu<mailto:elennox@fas.harvard.edu> 617-495-4283

5 years, 11 months

[Aspuru-Guzik Group List] FW: Excitonics Seminar, Luis Campos at Harvard -TOMORROW- May 17, 3pm

by Catherine M Bourgeois

Please post and forward to your groups. CENTER FOR EXCITONICS SEMINAR SERIES presents: Materials Design for Third Generation Singlet Fission Solar Cells May 17, 2018 at 3pm/Pfizer Lecture Hall- Harvard University Luis Campos Department of Chemistry, Columbia University [http://www.rle.mit.edu/excitonics/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/8939772-300x26…] Organic materials offer a rich palate to be decorated with functional units in order to tune various properties. For example, the ability to generate multiple excitons from a single photon (singlet fission in molecular materials) has the potential to significantly enhance the photocurrent in single-junction solar cells, and thus raise the power conversion efficiency from the Shockley-Queisser limit of 33% to 44%. However, there is a paucity of materials that undergo efficient singlet fission. Our group is interested in designing building blocks that are capable of generating triplet pairs in modular small molecules and polymers. This talk will provide an overview on our approach to the design, synthesis, and evaluation of the materials. Luis M. Campos is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry at Columbia University. He was born in Guadalajara, Mexico, and moved at the age of 11 to Los Angeles, California. He received a B.Sc. in Chemistry from CSU Dominguez Hills in 2001, and a Ph.D. from the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry at UCLA in 2006 working under the supervision of M. A. Garcia-Garibay and K. N. Houk. At UCLA, he was awarded the NSF Predoctoral Fellowship, Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowship, and the Saul & Silvia Winstein Award for his graduate research in solid-state photochemistry. Switching to materials chemistry, he went to UCSB as a UC President's Postdoctoral Fellow to work under the supervision of C. J. Hawker at the Materials Research Laboratory. At Columbia, his group's research interests lie in polymer chemistry, self-assembly, and organic electronic materials. The Center For Excitonics Is An Energy Frontier Research Center Funded By The U.S. Department Of Energy, Office Of Science And Office Of Basic Energy Sciences LIGHT REFRESHMENTS WILL BE SERVED

5 years, 11 months

[Aspuru-Guzik Group List] ITAMP lunch seminar - Zlatko Minev, Yale University (May 17th)

by Bekenstein, Rivka

*ITAMP Lunch Seminar* *Speaker:* Zlatko Minev (Yale University) *Date:* Thursday, May 17th *Time:* 12:00-1:00 pm Includes Pizza. *Title: *Catching and Reversing a Quantum Jump Mid-Flight *Abstract: *A quantum system driven by a weak deterministic force while under strong continuous energy measurement exhibits quantum jumps between its energy levels. This celebrated phenomenon is emblematic of the special nature of randomness in quantum physics. The times at which the jumps occur are reputed to be fundamentally unpredictable. However, certain classical phenomena, like tsunamis, while unpredictable in the long term, may possess a degree of predictability in the short term, and in some cases it may be possible to prevent a disaster by detecting an advance warning signal. Can there be, despite the indeterminism of quantum physics, a possibility to know if a quantum jump is about to occur or not? We answer this question affirmatively by experimentally demonstrating that the completed jump from the ground to an excited state of a superconducting artificial atom can be tracked, as it follows its predictable ``flight,'' by monitoring the population of an auxiliary level coupled to the ground state. Furthermore, we show that the completed jump is continuous, deterministic, and coherent. Exploiting this coherence, we catch and reverse a quantum jump mid-flight, thus preventing its completion. This real-time intervention is based on a particular lull period in the population of the auxiliary level, which serves as our advance warning signal. Our results, which agree with theoretical predictions essentially without adjustable parameters, support the modern quantum trajectory theory and provide new ground for the exploration of real-time intervention techniques in the control of quantum systems, such as early detection of error syndromes. *Location: *B-106 @ Center for Astrophysics (60 Garden Street) *Directions: *After entering the lobby of the CfA, turn right to enter the hallway of the B building. In the hallway, turn right again, B-106 will be at the end of the hallway on the left side.

5 years, 11 months

[Aspuru-Guzik Group List] [qip] Thursday talks

by Aram Harrow

1. At 3pm, Will Oliver will speak about his work designing better superconducting qubits. https://www.eecs.mit.edu/news-events/calendar/events/eecs-special-seminar-w… Event Speaker: William Oliver Event Location: 34-401A Grier A Event Date/Time: Thursday, May 17, 2018 - 3:00pm Abstract: Superconducting qubits are coherent artificial atoms assembled from electrical circuit elements and microwave components. Their lithographic scalability, compatibility with microwave control, and operability at nanosecond time scales all converge to make the superconducting qubit a leading candidate for the constituent logical elements of a quantum information processor. Spectacular improvement in their manufacturing and performance over the past decade has moved this technology from the realm of scientific curiosity to the threshold of technical reality. Over the past 15 years, my research at MIT Lincoln Laboratory and MIT campus has focused on the science and engineering of superconducting qubits, contributing broadly to the materials, fabrication, design, simulation, control, and measurement of state-of-art devices, as well as the development of cryogenic CMOS and superconducting digital logic for high-performance classical computing. In this talk, I will present this work, our progress, and the exciting challenges associated with engineering quantum systems of superconducting qubits. 2. Overlapping this is the Pappalardo symposium from 2-5pm, with several different talks on various aspects of physics, some of which have some q info significance. http://web.mit.edu/physics/events/symposium.html _______________________________________________ qip mailing list qip(a)mit.edu http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/qip

5 years, 11 months

[Aspuru-Guzik Group List] Excitonics Seminar, Luis Campos at Harvard - May 17, 3pm

by Catherine M Bourgeois

5 years, 11 months

[Aspuru-Guzik Group List] [qip] talk on Friday

by Aram Harrow

Dear quanta, Recent alum Adam Bouland will speak this Friday (1:30pm, 6c-442) about his work on the average-case complexity of circuit sampling. We are also still looking for an internal speaker for the group meeting. Please let me know if you'd like to talk. Speaker: Adam Bouland Title: "Quantum Supremacy" and the Complexity of Random Circuit Sampling Abstract: A critical goal for the field of quantum computation is quantum supremacy -- a demonstration of any quantum computation that is prohibitively hard for classical computers. It is both a necessary milestone on the path to useful quantum computers as well as a test of quantum theory in the realm of high complexity. A leading near-term candidate, put forth by the Google/UCSB team, is sampling from the probability distributions of randomly chosen quantum circuits, called Random Circuit Sampling (RCS). While RCS was defined with experimental realization in mind, we give complexity-theoretic evidence of classical hardness of RCS, placing it on par with the best theoretical proposals for supremacy. Specifically, we show that RCS satisfies an average-case hardness condition -- computing output probabilities of typical quantum circuits is as hard as computing them in the worst-case, and therefore #P-hard. Our reduction exploits the polynomial structure in the output amplitudes of random quantum circuits, enabled by the Feynman path integral. We also show that it is possible to verify RCS on intermediate-sized devices under a natural assumption, and we describe a new verification measure which in some formal sense maximizes the information gained from experimental samples. Based on joint work with Bill Fefferman, Chinmay Nirkhe, and Umesh Vazirani. arXiv:1803.04402 _______________________________________________ qip mailing list qip(a)mit.edu http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/qip

5 years, 11 months

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aspuru-list May 2018