Not even quantum objects can be in this many places at one time.
But that’s the beauty of Quantum Week at Yale (QWAY), an annual event offering programming for all levels of interest in quantum technology — from novices to industry leaders and top-tier researchers. It just keeps growing.
The year’s edition of QWAY, April 10-17, stretches across campus and beyond, with nearly a dozen activities at Yale plus events at the Connecticut Center for Arts and Technology (ConnCAT) in New Haven and the Connecticut Science Center in Hartford.
The week includes talks, tours, a town hall for scientists, and a viewing of rare science texts. And, not by accident, QWAY will celebrate World Quantum Day on April 14.
“Quantum Week has taken on a life of its own,” said Florian Carle, managing director of the Yale Quantum Institute (YQI) and coordinator for the week’s events. “More and more people around campus are hosting their own events, geared toward their communities.”
Florian Carle, managing director of the Yale Quantum Institute, is the coordinator of Quantum Week at Yale.
Quantum science is an exploration of physical properties governing the behavior of subatomic particles, atoms, and molecules. for more than two decades. Quantum discoveries made in the past two decades — including many discoveries made at Yale — have implications for computer science, engineering, chemistry, medicine, materials science, and physics.
Wright Lab, for example, will host a one-hour presentation at 9:30 a.m. on April 14 on quantum sensing research in fundamental physics. The event will include a “lightning round” of talks describing the work of 10 faculty members involved in an array of quantum sensing experiments — everything from the search for dark matter to the influence of quantum mechanics on gravity.
“Our hope is that we can raise awareness about Yale’s work in quantum sensing and invite other researchers to network with us and find new methods, tools, and techniques for even more avenues of research,” said Victoria Misenti, Wright Lab’s program manager.
At the other end of the spectrum, Carle will give a “gentle introduction” to quantum science on April 10 at 6:30 p.m., at ConnCAT. The presentation will feature quantum-related artwork and a live demonstration of a quantum computer.
Cedric Wilson, a postdoctoral fellow in physics, will lead a tour of the many-body quantum simulation lab at Sloane Physics Laboratory.
Other QWAY events include:
- A guided tour of the quantum labs in Becton Center at 3 p.m. April 11.
- A tour of the many-body quantum simulation lab at Sloane Physics Laboratory at 4 p.m. April 11.
“When I gave this tour last year, we had everyone from a high school student — who asked great questions — to leading quantum scientists from different disciplines,” said Cedric Wilson, a postdoctoral fellow in physics (and YQI Fellow).
Wilson said being part of QWAY is particularly important as a way of bringing fundamental and applied science into the same conversation. “While we have specific goals for our research, such as discovering new materials, in science you always discover other things along the way. Things you didn’t expect,” he said.
- A quantum hackathon, YQuantum Hack 2025, beginning at 9 a.m. April 12 at O.C. Marsh Hall in the Yale Science Building.
- The exhibition opening for “The Quantum Revolution: Handcrafted in New Haven,” from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 14 at the Connecticut Science Center. The exhibit showcases the past 25 years of Yale quantum science and information research.
- A two-day, town hall-style workshop, starting at 9 a.m. April 15 at the Yale Quantum Institute, 17 Hillhouse Ave., devoted to the needs of quantum researchers working on the challenges of quantum error correction;
- A pop-up exhibition of rare books on quantum mechanics and science, from 2 to 4 p.m. April 15 at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. Space is limited for this event, which features writings by Galileo, Isaac Newton, Josiah Gibbs, Albert Einstein, Werner Heisenberg, Max Planck, and Neils Bohr.
- An industry collaboration forum, including a quantum technology panel moderated by Albert Green, CEO of QuantumCT, starting at noon on April 16 at 100 College St. The forum is being hosted by Yale Ventures, a campus-wide initiative that supports Yale’s innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem.
One of the final QWAY events is a time-honored staple of academia: a Ph.D. defense. Shraddha Singh, a graduate student in physics and an active participant in YQI events, will defend her dissertation at 9 a.m. April 17 at YQI.
Singh’s dissertation sits firmly within the topic of quantum error correction — the ability to ensure fidelity in calculations when dealing with highly finnicky quantum data. Many proposed quantum computing systems rely upon bits of quantum information called qubits, which are prone to error; Singh’s work combines the utility of qubits with the stability and power of oscillators, toward the goal of building quantum computers resilient to errors.
“My thesis is an early step in the process to see if we can harness a hybrid approach to quantum systems,” Singh said, adding that she is proud her work will be part of an outreach efforts such as QWAY.
“I like to think about the possible applications for the work we do in quantum research,” she said. “It motivates us to do our best to build these new machines.”
