Rising fourth-year student Connor Blake, who is majoring in quantum molecular engineering and conducts research in labs at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, was one of four UChicago undergraduates to be awarded a Barry Goldwater Scholarship this year.
Established by Congress in 1986, the Barry Goldwater Scholarship is one of the most prestigious national awards that recognizes undergraduates who intend to pursue research careers in natural science, mathematics and engineering.
Blake, a native of Houston, knew UChicago was the place for him as early as the Admitted Student Open House that he attended.
“I vividly remember sitting in on an undergraduate research panel during an admitted student event where four students seemingly could not talk fast enough about how much they loved working on their research projects, and I decided these were the people for me,” Blake said.
During his time at the College, Blake has been inspired by a culture of engaged undergraduate research. Being surrounded by students who are passionate about research and “professors who are at the top of their fields and leading us to the edge of current knowledge,” is powering his work on quantum error correction protocols.
Tell us about your research.
My current research, which I do in Professor Liang Jiang’s group, explores ways to improve quantum error correction protocols in superconducting systems. My work combines a mix of computational modeling and theoretical formulations to try to identify and fix inefficiencies in the current state-of-the-art methods which are still several orders of magnitude away from optimality.
Previously, I worked on building self-driving thin-film synthesis using machine learning in Professor Shuolong Yang’s lab. It’s a tedious process but our technique autonomously achieves both high throughput and accuracy in growing thin films—a method that hopefully can be scaled up to more complex materials.
What does it mean to you to receive the Goldwater Scholarship?
Over the past three years of research, I’ve come to appreciate just how difficult generating new scientific knowledge is, so receiving the Goldwater Scholarship is an incredible affirmation of the work I have invested in contributing to that process.
I’d particularly like to thank professors Jiang and Yang, as well as Pierre Darancet at the Argonne National Laboratory, for their guidance and support. I'd also like to thank Clay Anderson and professors David Mazziotti, Mark Stoykovich and Suri Vaikuntanathan, along with many other excellent teachers, for deepening my love of science and challenging me with interesting problems.
Finally, I'd like to thank my parents and grandparents for their endless encouragement and support along my scientific journey.
About the scholarship
The undergraduates are among 441 winners for 2025 selected from a pool of over 5,000 applicants from universities across the country. Designed to help STEM students continue their research during their final years of undergraduate study, these scholarships will help cover winners’ cost of tuition, fees, books, room and board up to $7,500 per year.
—Read about the other Goldwater recipients on the UChicago News website.
2025 International Year of Quantum Science and Technology
The United Nations declared 2025 the International Year of Quantum to mark a century of progress in quantum science and engineering. The University of Chicago and its partners join the celebration of the groundbreaking fields that continue to positively impact lives around the world.