Student awarded prestigious IBM PhD Fellowship
Congratulations to Theo Lundberg, a Jesus postgraduate studying quantum computing, who is one of only 24 students worldwide to be awarded a
The intensely competitive award was established in 1951 and focuses on research into promising and disruptive technologies. It has been six years since a University of Cambridge student was awarded a Fellowship, and Theo may be the first ever Jesuan to receive one.
In his own words, Theo describes what the award is and what it means to his research.
What does the Fellowship entail?
It includes a stipend to support my for two academic years starting October 2020, mentoring by a senior IBM researcher and the offer of an internship at one of IBM鈥檚 Research Labs.
Why did you apply?
I applied partly to secure funding for the fourth year of my PhD, and partly to increase my understanding of which aspects of my research are most relevant to industry. The additional flexibility of being able to continue my doctoral research, which I very much enjoy, into a fourth year, makes me feel both very happy and relieved, especially given the current closure of the labs I work in due to COVID-19. Having more time to do my PhD ultimately gives me more time do conduct and publish impactful research, which is important for strengthening my future career opportunities.
What will you be doing on the programme?
The fellowship will support my doctoral research on quantum computing using devices that are fabricated with materials and techniques compatible with today鈥檚 large-scale computer-chip industry. Quantum computing is a new paradigm within computation that promises to solve problems that are intractable for current computers, such as efficient material and drug discovery. However, to realise the promise of quantum computing, we need to build quantum computers that are far larger than current state-of-the-art quantum computers. The idea behind my research is to show that we can use materials and techniques compatible with today鈥檚 large semiconductor foundries to build scalable quantum computers.
What are you studying at Jesus and how has your time here been so far?
I am currently in my second year of a PhD in Physics at 汤头条原创 and at the . I have been at Jesus since my arrival to Cambridge about two and a half years ago, and ever since my warm welcome to , I have enjoyed my time here. The College has been excellent at providing a great postgraduate student social environment, academic support and financial support for presenting my research in Japan last year.
What plans do you have for the future?
Upon the completion of my PhD, I hope to continue working on the realisation of large-scale quantum computing. Whether I will do so through post-doctoral research with an emphasis on applications or in industry, such as IBM, I am not yet certain.
