EPSRC DTP PhD Studentship: Quantum algorithms for near-term ion-trap devices (2022)

What you get

Standard UKRI stipend of £16,062 stipend, research training grant of £1,650 per annum and full tuition fees up to the overseas rate for 3.5 years.

Type of award

Postgraduate Research

PhD project

Quantum computing is a paradigm for high-performance computation which has known applications to cryptography, and expected benefits for industrial applications such as quantumchemistry.“Shor’s algorithm” would inprinciple allow a fully-developed quantum computer to factorise large integers and compute discrete logarithms, which are the basis of almost all cryptographic systems used on the internet. The techniques to do so rest on the ability to use quantum mechanics to perform fundamentally different computational operations on data, which would also yield significant benefits for solving optimisation problems. Those problems which themselves involve quantum mechanics at their core, such as simulating the properties of molecules, are expected to be particularly amenable to solution by quantum computers.

The potential for quantum computers to provide great computational advantages over conventional computing systems, has motivated a global effort by physicists and engineers to develop reliable and scalable quantum computing platforms. At the same time, computer scientists are presented with the challenge of finding ways to solve problems of interest, while making the best use of the computing resources offered by early quantum hardware platforms.This raises the prospect of developing new algorithms, while at the same time exploring the issues involved in implementing computational procedures on practical quantum hardware.

In this project, you will investigate how quantum chemistry, optimisation problems, and similar computational problems may be approached on an architecture of mobile ions in a 2D network of ion traps.You will explore approaches to selecting and analysing problems, emphasising the issues involved in deploying these algorithms in realistic quantum hardware.This will provide you with the opportunity to learn the skills required to thrive in the emerging field of quantum software and quantum systems engineering.

Eligibility

The stipend is available to: UK / EU / Overseas.

The fee waiver is available to: UK / EU / Overseas.

Eligible candidates will have a 2:1 degree or equivalent in a related field.

Deadline

How to apply

Apply online for a full time PhD in Informatics using our step-by-step guide (http://www.sussex.ac.uk/study/phd/apply). Here you will also find details of our entry requirements.

Please clearly state on your application form that you are applying for the EPSRC DTP 2022 under the supervision of Dr Jonathan “Niel” de Beaudrap (niel.debeaudrap@sussex.ac.uk)

Contact us

For queries related to the admissions process please contact PhD.Informatics@sussex.ac.uk. For queries related to the research project please contact niel.debeaudrap@sussex.ac.uk.

Timetable

Deadline: Extended to June 10th

Interview Date: Late June 

Decision: Early July

Start Date: 19th September