PhD Position in Quantum Simulation Theory
PhD Position in Quantum Simulation Theory
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Job Description
Do you like developing new analytical and numerical techniques for
(i) understanding equilibrium and out-of-equilibrium properties of quantum many-body systems;
(ii) design robust protocols for entanglement generation for quantum enhanced sensing;
(iii) develop new architectures for analogue and digital quantum simulation in hybrid quantum systems
In your PhD you will work on problems along these three directions and work closely with experimental and theory collaborators in Amsterdam Strasbourg Joined Quantum Institute (JQI) and Sydney.
Join Us!
This PhD position is part of the Gen-Q programme and applications must also be submitted through the Gen-Q website. Gen-Q has received funding from the European Unions Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement number .
You will participate in network meetings across Europe where you will learn about quantum technology from experts in the field and train essential skills such as academic writing and outreach. You will participate in a summer school and regular consortium meetings with the other PhDs. You will spend time in the lab of a consortium partner.
This is what you will do
With this project you will join a team of experimental and theoretical quantum physicists at the University of Amsterdam under the supervision of Arghavan Safavi-Naini. Our theory team is active both on proposing next generation protocols and devices for quantum computation and quantum information theory as well as closely collaborating with the groups of Rene Gerritsma and Florian Schreck to guide and support the current generation of experiments.
Quantum many-body systems with spin and motional degrees of freedom play an important role in quantum simulation and quantum computation. They underlie many of the leading quantum simulation platforms ranging from superconducting circuits to trapped ions and form the underlying Hamiltonians of paradigmatic problems in impurity physics quantum chemistry and polaritonic chemistry where their study promises to predict quantum many-body dynamics of molecules and control chemical reactions.
Thus the ability to understand steady-state properties as well as the dynamics of spin-boson systems (both closed and in the presence of an environment) is crucial to advancing current NISQ platforms developing protocols for robust state preparation and extending the level of control over the aforementioned polaritonic chemistry. However the complex nature of the Hamiltonians and infinite-dimensional bosonic Hilbert space means that so far no single treatment has been able to tackle the range of systems described by spin-boson type Hamiltonians or even the full parameter space of a specific model.
In the past three years our group has developed a new approach based on non-Gaussian variational ansatz applicable to a broad class of spin-boson Hamiltonians in both open and closed systems. However so far our approach has been limited to 3-5 spins coupled to several bosonic modes (see publications of Liam Bond on ). In this project we will recast our method in the matrix product state (MPS) language. We will use the formalism developed for Gaussian states to construct a non-Gaussian ansatz for the bosons with an additional local spin degree of freedom. This will enable to model a variety of spin-boson Hamiltonians with typical sources of dissipation with application to quantum simulation and polaritonic chemistry.
What we ask of you
- at least 8 months of master project in either condensed matter theory quantum optics or quantum computing and simulation.
- good team working skills;
- good English skills;
- programming skills;
- strong letter of recommendation from master project supervisor;
- Beneficial skill: familiarity with a numerical method such as matrix product states knowledge of open quantum systems strong mathematics background
For MSCA PhD positions it is required that the applicant shall at the date of recruitment be in the first four years (full-time equivalent research experience) of their research careers and have not been awarded a doctoral degree. The applicant must not have resided or carried out her/his main activity (e.g. work or studies) in the Netherlands for more than 12 months in the three years immediately prior the recruitment date.
This is what we offer you
A temporary contract for 38 hours per week for the duration of 4 years (the initial contract will be for a period of 18 months and after satisfactory evaluation it will be extended for a total duration of 4 years). The preferred starting date is 1 October 2025 or as soon as possible after should lead to a dissertation (PhD thesis). We will draft an educational plan that includes attendance of courses and (international) meetings. We also expect you to assist in teaching undergraduates and master students.
You will work in this team
The hybrid quantum systems (hyqs) group comprises of theory (headed by Arghavan Safavi-Naini and experimental (headed by Rene Gerritsma). As a theorist you will be part of Institute of theoretical physics (ITFA) as well as the Institute of Physics (IoP) of the University of Amsterdam (UvA). You will also be affiliated QuSoft.
If you feel the profile fits you and you are interested in the job we look forward to receiving your application. This call for applicants is placed by the Gen-Q network.
The application must be submitted through the Gen-Q website.
Follow the instructions there and select Grand Challenge C Developing quantum hardware and topic 29C Robust state preparations in spin boson systems. You must submit the same documents also via the button below. We accept applications until and including31 August 2025.
A complete application must only consist of:
- Motivation letter
- CV
- Reference letter (cannot be provided by future potential supervisor)
- Ethics self-assessment
- Masters degree or any equivalent degree that enables to embark on a doctoral programme
All documents must be submitted as a single PDF file. Please put your family name in the file name. Please note that any extra non-requested documents will be disregarded. For further information regarding the motivation letter see theguide for applicants. There is atemplate for the CVas well as atemplate for the ethics self-assessment. Please see theguidelines for more information on how to fill in the ethics self-assessment document. A knowledge security check can be part of the selection procedure (for details:national knowledge security guidelines).
If you have questions please contact .
Employment Type
Full Time
