The Chicago Quantum Exchange and the University of Chicago held the second annual Quantum Creators Prize Symposium on November, 15, 2022, to recognize the achievements of early-career researchers in the broad areas of quantum information science and engineering. It was held in person at the David Rubenstein Forum in Chicago as part of the 2022 Chicago Quantum Summit.
Victoria Xu, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Institution: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Bio: Victoria Xu's research focuses on quantum noise reduction in gravitational wave detectors. Her work involves coupling squeezed light sources to a 300-meter narrow-band filter cavity to rotate the squeezing quadrature below 100 Hz, reducing low-frequency opto-mechanical backaction noise in Advanced LIGO and configuring the interferometers for optimal sensing below the standard quantum limit. These advances are expected to increase gravitational wave detection from near-weekly to near-daily occurrences across the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA network.
As of August 2026: Assistant Professor, University of California, Berkeley
Xin Zheng, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Institution: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Bio: Xin Zheng's research demonstrates a "multiplexed" optical lattice clock that allows two or more clocks to operate within a single vacuum chamber. Through synchronous differential clock comparisons, his group has achieved atom-atom coherence times of 30 seconds and clock comparison instability below one part in 10¹⁹ in under 3.5 hours of averaging. His work includes a precision laboratory test of gravitational redshift at the sub-centimeter scale using a miniature clock network, with future prospects for tests using quantum entanglement.
As of August 2026: Senior Physicist, AOSense, Inc.
Abhinav Deshpande, California Institute of Technology
Institution: California Institute of Technology
Bio: Abhinav Deshpande's research examines the computational complexity of simulating quantum physical systems, producing complexity phase diagrams in parameter space for both classical and quantum computers. His recent results include an understanding of many-body-localized systems and a complexity phase diagram for long-range bosonic Hamiltonians, with implications for the fundamental limits of quantum and classical simulation.
As of August 2026: Research Scientist, IBM
Aaron Young, University of Colorado Boulder
Institution: University of Colorado Boulder
Bio: Aaron Young's research uses optical tweezer arrays and narrow-line optical cooling to assemble large Fock states of bosonic alkaline-earth atoms in an optical lattice, enabling studies of many-particle interference in regimes inaccessible with photons. His platform combines programmable evolution, high-quality-factor internal states, and switchable interactions to support quantum-enhanced precision measurement and simulations of interacting spin and Hubbard models.
As of August 2026: Postdoctoral Fellow, Harvard University
Judy (Zhurun) Ji, Stanford University
Institution: Stanford University
Bio: Judy (Zhurun) Ji's research introduces "nonlocality" into optoelectronics to uncover optical signatures of quantum materials. Her discoveries include the spatially dispersive circular photogalvanic effect, orbital photogalvanic effect, and opto-twistronic responses, studied through angle-resolved photocurrent spectroscopy and optically coupled microwave impedance microscopy. Her work explores the optical properties of topological semimetals and 2D van der Waals semiconductors, with implications for quantum circuits utilizing quantum materials.
As of August 2026: Assistant Professor of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Jens Hertkorn, University of Stuttgart
Institution: University of Stuttgart
Bio: Jens Hertkorn's research investigates pattern formation in ultracold dipolar quantum gases, mapping the phase diagram of quantum ferrofluids in oblate trap geometries. Beyond the supersolid droplet regime, his work identifies crystalline honeycomb and amorphous labyrinthine states that combine superfluidity with spontaneously broken spatial symmetry, proposed as candidates for new types of supersolids and superglasses stabilized by quantum fluctuations.
As of August 2026: Postdoctoral Fellow, Pappalardo Fellowship in Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Anuva Aishwarya, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Institution: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Bio: Anuva Aishwarya's research uses nanofabricated samarium hexaboride nanowires as spin-polarized scanning tunneling microscopy tips to image magnetic order in quantum materials. Her work images bicollinear stripe spin order in iron telluride, revealing that antiferromagnetic stripes become invisible above 10 K concomitant with suppression of topological surface states, and demonstrates that tunneling direction is tied to spin-polarization orientation—a signature of spin-momentum locked surface states.
As of August 2026: Postdoctoral Fellow, Harvard University
Kyle Seyler, California Institute of Technology
Institution: California Institute of Technology
Bio: Kyle Seyler's research uses intense laser pulses and optical second-harmonic generation to detect and manipulate antiferromagnetism in undoped cuprates on ultrashort timescales. His work directly visualizes mesoscopic magnetic domain structure in cuprate parent compounds, uncovering a spin reorientation transition that swaps antiferromagnetic domain states while preserving domain structure, and explores light-based manipulation of cuprate antiferromagnetism.
As of August 2026: Assistant Professor of Optical Sciences, University of Arizona
Chris Anderson, Stanford University
Institution: Stanford University
Bio: Chris Anderson's research develops silicon carbide (SiC) as a CMOS-compatible semiconductor platform for quantum repeaters and quantum networking. His group isolates and controls single electron spin qubits with record coherence times, entangles them with nuclear spin quantum memories, and achieves single-shot readout. Leveraging the mature SiC electronics industry, his work demonstrates that semiconductor device engineering improves optical coherence for entanglement generation, and advances SiC quantum photonic devices for distributing entangled states over fiber-optic telecommunications networks.
As of August 2026: Assistant Professor, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Yihui Quek, Freie Universität Berlin
Institution: Freie Universität Berlin
Bio: Yihui Quek's research applies learning theory to quantum benchmarking and characterization in the near-term device setting. Her work studies the learnability of distributions output by local quantum circuits, shows how learning noisy quantum states places strong barriers on error mitigation efficacy, and investigates how quantum processes can be learned even without control at their input.
As of August 2026: Assistant Professor in Computer Science and Physics, EPFL – Swiss Federal Technology Institute of Lausanne
Colin Lualdi, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Institution: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Bio: Colin Lualdi's research pursues high-efficiency single-photon sources for scalable photonic entanglement generation. His work combines multiplexing methods with high-purity single-photon sources, low-loss fast optical switches, efficient quantum memories, and photon-number-resolving detectors. He also investigates ultrasensitive metrology using frequency-entangled photon pairs, demonstrating attosecond temporal resolution that combines the advantages of classical and quantum two-photon interference for nanometer-scale metrological studies.
As of August 2026: Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Zahra Baghali Khanian, Technical University of Munich
Institution: Technical University of Munich
Bio: Zahra Baghali Khanian's research unifies distinct notions of quantum sources and their compression. By defining the most general quantum source as a quantum system together with correlations with a mixed reference system, her work subsumes prior models—including Schumacher's original definitions and the Koashi-Imoto ensemble of mixed states—and characterizes the optimal compression rate for this general framework.
As of August 2026: Postdoc, Technical University of Munich
View the 2021 Quantum Creators Prize winners here.
| Time (CST) | Event | Speaker(s) |
| 8:15 – 9:00 AM | Registration & Breakfast | |
| 9:00 – 9:05 AM | Program Welcome | David Awschalom, Liew Family Professor of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago; Senior Scientist, Argonne; Director, Chicago Quantum Exchange |
| 9:05 – 9:35 AM | Keynote | Barbara Helland, Associate Director of the Office of Science's Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR), Department of Energy |
| 9:35 – 11:15 AM | Session 1: Quantum Creators: Correlations, Entanglement, and Metrology | Victoria Xu, Postdoc, MIT; Xin Zheng, Postdoc, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Abhinav Deshpande, Postdoc, California Institute of Technology; Aaron Young, PhD student, University of Colorado Boulder |
| 11:15 – 11:30 AM | Break | |
| 11:30 AM – 12:00 PM | Keynote | Sean L. Jones, Assistant Director for the Directorate of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, National Science Foundation |
| 12:00 – 1:00 PM | Lunch | |
| 1:00 – 2:40 PM | Session 2: Quantum Creators: Novel Quantum Materials | Zhurun Ji, Postdoc, Stanford University; Jens Hertkorn, PhD student, University of Stuttgart; Anuva Aishwarya, PhD student, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; Kyle Seyler, Postdoc, California Institute of Technology |
| 2:40 – 2:55 PM | Break | |
| 2:00 – 5:00 PM | Session 3: Quantum Creators: Quantum Information and Networks | Chris Anderson, Postdoc, Stanford University; YihuiQuek, Postdoc, Freie Universität Berlin; Colin Lualdi, PhD student, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign |
The 2022 Quantum Creators Prize Symposium Program Committee:
- Chair: Hannes Bernien, University of Chicago
- Eric Chitamber, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- Jennifer Choy, University of Wisconsin–Madison
- Dave DeMille, University of Chicago
- Alex High, University of Chicago
- Shimon Kolkowitz, University of Wisconsin–Madison
- Angela Kou, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- Kathy Levin, University of Chicago
This event is sponsored by:
Chicago Quantum Exchange
The University of Chicago
VentureWell
Duality Accelerator
HRL Laboratories
Graduate students and postdoctoral fellows from any institution who wish to be considered for the Quantum Creators Prize Symposium should submit the following information by September 11, 2022:
- A C.V.
- A brief research statement (500 words) outlining research interests and achievements
- A brief personal statement (300 words) describing your vision for a future career in STEM research/education and how it has been shaped by your own perspectives and experiences working in the STEM research/education community
- Applicants should also request a recommendation letter from an advisor to be submitted through the link provided here
Applications for 2022 are closed
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