Quantum BC Seminar Series - Dr. Malcolm Kennett
2025-10-14 14:00 - 15:00 (America/Vancouver)
Quantum BC Seminar Series Tuesday, October 14, 2025 at 2pm BC Time
Speaker: Dr. Malcolm Kennett from Simon Fraser University
Join on Zoom: https://ubc.zoom.us/j/69443327772?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 694 4332 7772 Passcode: [REDACTED]
Join in Person At SFU Burnaby: SCP 8445.2
Seminar Title: Out of equilibrium dynamics and information spreading in the Bose Hubbard model

Seminar Abstract: The Bose-Hubbard model (BHM) is the simplest model of interacting bosons on a lattice and can be realized with ultra-cold
atoms in an optical lattice. As the ratio of interactions to hopping are tuned in the model there is a quantum phase transition
between a superfluid and an insulating phase that has been observed experimentally. Out of equilibrium phenomena in the
BHM, such as the spreading of correlations, thermalization and many-body localization have attracted considerable interest in recent years. While dynamics in one dimension can be solved essentially exactly, approximate methods are required in higher dimensions. This has opened up the suggestion of using cold bosons in an optical lattice as a quantum simulator. We have developed a strong coupling approach that allows us to access out of equilibrium phenomena in dimensions higher than one. I will survey results that we have obtained with this method which include: i) investigating the spreading of correlations in one, two and three dimensions and comparing to experimental results; ii) studying the effect of disorder on the BHM phase diagram and its implications for experimental claims of many body localization; and iii)
applying a machine learning approach to obtain quantitative improvements to our calculations of single particle correlations that may be generalizable to out of equilibrium dynamics in other quantum systems.

Short biography: Malcolm Kennett obtained his B.Sc and M.Sc degrees in Astrophysics from the University of Sydney, followed by a Ph.D in Condensed Matter Theory at Princeton University. He was a postdoc in the Theory of Condensed Matter Group at the University of Cambridge before moving to SFU as a faculty member in 2005. He currently works on out of equilibrium dynamics in strongly interacting quantum systems, with a focus on ultra-cold atoms, and on properties of quantum materials.

FABrIC Build Your Own Superconducting Quantum Device Workshop
2025-10-20 - 2025-10-24 | University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
A growing number of Canadian companies (i.e., Qubic, Xanadu, Nord Quantique, DWave, Anyon Systems) are now building quantum computers based on superconducting technology, requiring a combination of components such as quantum bits, couplers, and control and readout lines in a single chip. A local start-up like Red Blue Quantum, based in Waterloo, is providing qubit and superconducting circuit fabrication services to the ecosystem, and its founders have been involved as instructors, participants, or advisers in this event in previous editions. At least one company, Qubic Technologies, is leveraging the technology for sensing, transmitting and receiving applications, making its mark in the field. All these require an understanding of the hardware they rely upon. A small design or fabrication error may lead to a complete failure of a quantum-computer chip or sensor, wasting development time and resources. Therefore, the talent developing these components must master fundamental concepts of physics (quantum mechanics and superconductivity) and state-of-the-art design and simulation tools and techniques to fabricate working devices. Additionally, earlier established companies, including Keysight, Siemens, and Cadence, are opening quantum divisions and providing supporting elements such as tools and instrumentations to the quantum ecosystem. And they can use events such as this one to scope out the requirements for their products. Many other companies or organizations focusing on quantum computing can benefit from a better understanding of the issues faced by the hardware in reproducing the quantum states upon which their applications and algorithms are built.

To train highly qualified personnel to develop state-of-the-art quantum computers, CMC Microsystems is joining forces with the Institute for Quantum Computing/University of Waterloo, Institut quantique, University of Victoria, and University of British Columbia to deliver the 5th edition of the “Build your Own Superconducting Quantum Device Workshop”. The workshop will provide a training experience for 50 participants from industry, as well as Canadian and foreign universities, with relevant science or engineering backgrounds.

The workshop will teach participants how to design, simulate, fabricate, and test their superconducting circuits. It will cover the fundamentals of superconductors and Josephson junctions, and how to design circuits such as resonators and qubits. Trainees will brainstorm device ideas with leading Canadian universities and industry researchers. They will use CMC-provided CAD tools to design, simulate, and submit devices for fabrication. Most trainees will test their chips at their home institution.

During the workshop, participants will have the opportunity to attend the Quantum Networking Day. Moreover, attendees are encouraged to participate in the Superconducting Quantum Device Design Awards (See details below). Don’t miss CMC BasecampTM Build Your Own Superconducting Quantum Device workshop, which will allow you to learn why superconducting devices are at the heart of today’s commercial quantum computers such as those of Nord Quantique, Anyon Systems, D-Wave, and IBM.

Superconducting Quantum Device Design Awards

Participants are encouraged to participate in a Device Design Award (a virtual event) in March 2026. The best design ideas will be awarded* for the fabrication of their devices.
Eligibility criteria:

Attend the in-person workshop.
Be enrolled in graduate studies in Canada.
Submit the design layout file for evaluation during the Device Design Award.
Present their device ideas to a panel of experts at the Device Design Award event.
Agree to submit a device test report 4 to 6 months after receiving the fabricated device.

*A limited number of awards are available.

For More Info And To Register

Quantum BC Seminar with Dr. Gregor Weihs
2025-10-28 14:00 - 15:00
Quantum BC Seminar Series Tuesday, October 28, 2025 at 2pm BC Time with Dr. Gregor Weihs
Join on Zoom: https://ubc.zoom.us/j/69443327772?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 694 4332 7772 Passcode: [REDACTED]
Join in Person At SFU Burnaby: SCP 8445.2
Seminar Title: Quantum Science Austria & Quantum Light Sources

Seminar Abstract:
This presentation will have two parts. For one I would like to introduce Quantum Science Austria, a large Cluster of Excellence funded by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF). Under its umbrella about 70 research groups at six Austrian institutions pursue cutting-edge research on three topics in fundamental quantum science: “Quantum Physics of Space, Time and Gravity”, “New Paradigms of Quantum Information Science”, and “Physics of Engineered Quantum Many-Body Systems”. In addition to its research the Cluster promotes training of early-stage researchers and knowledge and technology transfer.
The second part of my presentation is all about quantum light sources. High-quality single photons, entangled photon pairs and other quantum states of light are what powers optical quantum information processing and quantum communication. In our research we rely on spontaneous parametric down-conversion in crystals or waveguides and on single semiconductor quantum dots.
Recent results include photons with unprecedented spectral purity through joint nonlinearity and pump engineering, ultra-wide-band photon pairs from integrated nonlinear semiconductor waveguides [1], single photons from quantum dots with controllable photon-number coherence [2], and coherent control of dark states in quantum dots for advanced encoding in quantum communication [3].

Thiel, L. Jehle, R. J. Chapman, et al., Time-bin entanglement at telecom wavelengths from a hybrid photonic integrated circuit, Scientific Reports 14, 9990 (2024), https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-60758-4
Karli, D. A. Vajner, F. Kappe, et al., Controlling the photon number coherence of solid-state quantum light sources for quantum cryptography, npj Quantum Information 10, 17 (2024), https://doi.org/10.1038/s41534-024-00811-2
Kappe, R. Schwarz, Y. Karli, et al., Keeping the photon in the dark: Enabling quantum dot dark state control by chirped pulses and magnetic fields, Science Advances 11, eadu4261 (2025), https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adu4261

Short Bio:
Gregor Weihs is Vice-Rector for Research at the University of Innsbruck, Professor of Photonics at its Department for Experimental Physics and Director of Research of the Cluster of Excellence Quantum Science Austria. He received his MSc degree from Innsbruck University in 1994. His PhD degree from Vienna University was awarded “sub auspiciis praesidentis” by the President of the Austrian Republic in 2000. Before returning to Innsbruck, he held a junior faculty position at the University of Vienna, was Consulting Assistant Professor at Stanford University, Research Fellow at the University of Tokyo, and Associate Professor at the University of Waterloo, Canada, where he was awarded the Canada Research Chair in Quantum Photonics. From 2016 to 2021 he was the Vice-President for Natural Sciences and Engineering of the Austrian Science Fund and its interim President for several months. Other major awards include a Starting Grant by the European Research Council and the Wilhelm-Exner medal of the Austrian Trade and Crafts Association. He was a member of the Young Academy of the Austrian Academy of Sciences and a Fellow in the QIP program of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research. His research interests include fundamental physics, quantum and semiconductor optics and quantum information.

Quantum BC Seminar Series - Dr. Irina Paci
2025-11-04 14:00 - 15:00
Quantum BC Seminar Series Tuesday, November 4, 2025 at 2pm BC Time with Dr. Irina Paci
Join on Zoom: https://ubc.zoom.us/j/69443327772?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 694 4332 7772 Passcode: [REDACTED]
Join in Person at UVic: ELL 305
Seminar Title: Computational Modelling of Polarization in Quantum Materials
Seminar Abstract: Polarization links atomic-scale charge rearrangements to the emergent behavior of quantum materials, underlying dielectric and optical response, charge noise and qubit coherence. In this talk, I will outline how first-principles calculations can capture these effects, moving from the modern Berry-phase theory of polarization to its practical implementation in density-functional and finite-field formalisms. I will discuss recent literature as well as our group’s work in understanding how polarization evolves at surfaces, interfaces, and low-symmetry environments relevant in quantum applications. Applications of theory to oxide-based dielectrics and ferroelectrics and their heterostructures illustrate how computed polarization differences, local dipoles, and defect-induced fields relate to measurable quantities. I will conclude with ongoing efforts in our group to use data-driven modeling to identify low-noise, polarization-tunable materials for quantum technologies.

Short biography: Irina Paci is a Professor of Chemistry at the University of Victoria. She completed her B.Sc. in Iași, Romania, and earned her Ph.D. at Queen’s University in Kingston, where she developed integral equation theories for liquids with low symmetry, including chiral and nematic systems. In 2004, she joined Northwestern University as a postdoctoral fellow with Mark Ratner, working on topics ranging from singlet fission processes for solar cells to self-assembled nanodielectrics and dip-pen nanolithography.
Since establishing her group at the University of Victoria in 2007, Dr. Paci has focused on developing and applying computational and theoretical methods for complex, nanostructured materials. Her group investigates polarization and optoelectronic response in metal and metal-oxide systems, with the dual goals of improving theoretical methodologies and guiding materials design for specific applications. A complementary research direction explores molecular and precursor deposition on metallic and oxide substrates, combining quantum-level investigations of binding and structure with mesoscale simulations to connect local interactions to macroscopic behavior.

Comm^2 Workshop
2025-11-13 - 2025-11-14 | University of British Columbia, Macleod Room 3038, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Workshop
2025-11-26 13:30 - 16:30
Our annual online EDI workshop will take place on Wednesday, November 26 from 1:30 to 4:30pm. To find out more and register please email bahiyyih.peters@ubc.ca

Quantum BC Seminar Series - Dr. James Brown
2026-01-13 13:30 - 14:30
Quantum BC Seminar Series Tuesday, January 13, 2026 at 1:30pm BC Time with Dr. James Brown
Please note the earlier start time at 1:30pm

Title: Empowering Quantum Research and Education: New Algorithmic Approaches and the qBraid Platform.
Abstract:
This talk presents recent advances in quantum computing research at qBraid alongside practical tools designed to accelerate both research and education in quantum computing. The first half of the talk will explore three cutting-edge research directions that address key challenges in quantum algorithms and molecular simulation. These include 1)An onion quantum reservoir computing (QRC) architecture for time-series prediction, inspired by classical echo state networks. By simultaneously evolving multiple quantum reservoirs that capture different temporal scales through controlled eigenvalue spectrum manipulation, we achieve superior performance in predicting aluminum alloy degradation under varying environmental conditions while maintaining shallow circuit depths suitable for current NISQ devices. 2)Improvements to the Generalized Superfast Encoding (GSE), a Fermion-to-qubit mapping designed for molecular Hamiltonians. Through path optimization, multi-edge graph structures for enhanced error detection, and efficient stabilizer measurement frameworks, our approach significantly outperforms traditional mappings like Jordan-Wigner and Bravyi-Kitaev. 3) We examine Hamiltonian transformations inspired by Qubit Coupled Cluster (QCC) methods that generate Clifford transformations deterministically. These techniques produce efficient classical approximations with accuracy between MP2 and CISD while significantly reducing entanglement, enabling improved DMRG calculations and low-depth VQE circuits with reduced CNOT counts. The second half of the talk will feature a live demonstration of the qBraid platform, which provides seamless access to GPUs, CPUs, and QPUs, alongside qBook—an interactive, web-based notebook environment designed to transform quantum computing education. These tools lower barriers to entry for students and researchers across the Quantum BC consortium institutions, enabling hands-on exploration of quantum algorithms and immediate implementation of cutting-edge research techniques.

Bio : I am a research scientist and software developer who develops and implements methods to calculate properties of materials using both classical and quantum/ quantum-inspired algorithms. I have published about methods to calculate a broad range of material properties including molecular vibrations, vibronic dynamics and electronic structure.

Google Scholar (https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=q0R3tm8AAAAJ&hl=en)
Open-Source Software developed from research.
Tangelo (https://github.com/goodchemistryco/Tangelo)
TDDFTinversion (https://github.com/brownj42/TDDFTinversion)
Join on Zoom: https://ubc.zoom.us/j/69443327772?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 694 4332 7772 Passcode: [REDACTED]

Quantum BC Seminar Series - Jinyang Li from RIKEN
2026-02-10 14:00 - 15:00
Quantum BC Seminar Series Tuesday, February 10, 2026 at 2:00pm BC Time with Jinyang Li
Join on Zoom: https://ubc.zoom.us/j/69443327772?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 694 4332 7772 Passcode: [REDACTED]

Seminar Title: Neural Operator Learning in Quantum Simulations

Seminar Abstract:
Simulating the real-time operator dynamics is crucial to characterize quantum many-body systems. The simulation can be performed efficiently using quantum computers and potentially exhibiting a practical quantum advantage over classical computers. However, due to decoherence in quantum simulators, the operator dynamics is limited within a short evolution time, such that the quantum systems are characterized with low accuracy. On the other hand, given the short-time data, neural networks with physics priors can potentially learn the operator dynamics and predict the long-time behavior. In this work, we implement neural ordinary differential equations (Neural ODEs) to learn the intrinsic dynamics from the short-time signal and extract physical kernels. By exploiting physical symmetries and locality, it reduces complexity while retaining essential operator dynamics. Our method provides a scalable and data-efficient avenue to characterize quantum many-body systems using noisy quantum computers where long-time dynamics is unavailable.

Short Bio:
Junior Research Associate, Division of Fundamental Mathematical Science, RIKEN Center for Interdisciplinary Theoretical and Mathematical Sciences (iTHEMS)
Student Trainee, Division of Fundamental Mathematical Science, RIKEN Center for Interdisciplinary Theoretical and Mathematical Sciences (iTHEMS) (concurrent)
My research at ITHEMS aligns with Quantum computing and machine learning. I have experience in optical quantum sensors and QCD thermal history.
Recently, I have become interested in utilizing both quantum and computer techniques to figure out some hints of underlying physics rules that are hard to discover directly. I am also interested in how closely a ML model can imitate a human, or more precisely, a physicist. For example, using ML method to study the intrinsic dynamics of a quantum process and make a long-term prediction.

Quantum Days
2026-02-18 - 2026-02-20 | Victoria Conference Centre
Join us for this annual event happening right here in BC!

Quantum Days 2026
Victoria Conference Centre
February 18-20, 2026
Details: https://2026.quantumdays.ca/

Quantum BC Seminar Series - Dr. Wojtek Fedorko
2026-04-14 14:00 - 15:00
Quantum BC Seminar Series Tuesday, April 14, 2026 at 2:00pm BC Time with Dr. Wojtek Fedorko (Triumf)
Join on Zoom: https://ubc.zoom.us/j/69443327772?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 694 4332 7772 Passcode: [REDACTED]

Quantum BC Research Day at the University of Victoria
2026-04-24 10:00 - 17:00 | University of Victoria, 3800 Finnerty Road, Victoria, BC, V8P 5C2, Canada
Please join us for the 4th annual Quantum BC Research Day, taking place at the University of Victoria on Friday, April 24, 2026 from 10am to 5pm.

Register Here for Quantum BC Research Day 2026 at UVic

QBC Seminar with Tristan Zaborniak
2026-05-12 14:00 - 15:00
Quantum BC Seminar Series Tuesday, May 12, 2026 at 2:00pm BC Time with Tristan Zaborniak (University of Victoria)
Join on Zoom: https://ubc.zoom.us/j/69443327772?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 694 4332 7772 Passcode: [REDACTED]

Roadmapping Workshop
2026-05-21 - 2026-05-22
This annual workshop is tailored to students in quantum computing.
This year will take place at SFU Burnaby Mountain in the Physics department on May 21-22, 2026.
Register Here to attend the Roadmapping Workshop 2026

Quantum BC Seminar Series - Dr. Stepan Formichev
2026-08-11 14:00 - 15:00
Quantum BC Seminar Series Tuesday, August 11, 2026 at 2:00pm BC Time with Dr. Stepan Formichev (Xanadu)
Join on Zoom: https://ubc.zoom.us/j/69443327772?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 694 4332 7772 Passcode: [REDACTED]
