Summer among the qubits

Fourteen-year-old St. Charles, Illinois, high schooler Sarah Krohn knew how she wanted to spend her summer vacation.

“I love to learn,” said Krohn, who completed her freshman year in the spring. “It’s one of my biggest passions to learn about something I’m interested in, like quantum physics.”

Krohn was one of 24 Illinois high school students participating in the most recent Orbic Quantum Quickstart cohort. Each year, the free program brings ninth- and tenth-graders from high schools across the state to the regional hub of quantum education and research, the UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering.

During their weeklong stay, Quickstart students attend special lectures by PME faculty and explore this fascinating research area. The conversations have ranged from the theoretical mechanics of quantum physics to looking under the hoods of quantum computers during lab tours.

“Quantum Quickstart is a unique opportunity to meet PME professors and experience undergraduate lectures.”  said UChicago Assistant Director of Admissions Faithe Beadle, who runs the program. “This creates a special environment in which not only are quantum students exposed to the field, but they are infused with confidence that makes them say, ‘Yes! I can do this!’”

‘The weirdness of quantum’

Quantum engineering is poised to change every aspect of modern life, from disease detection to high-speed computing to unhackable networks to more energy-efficient AI.

As Illinois is becoming a hub for quantum innovation and industry, it’s more important than ever to engage young people across the state.

The UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, in partnership with PSD, and the University of Chicago as a whole are fully committed to pushing quantum forward and being a key link in Illinois’ booming quantum infrastructure.

“Exposing young students to those quantum concepts early helps to make them comfortable with the ‘weirdness’ of quantum, and inspire them to study quantum science in college and beyond,” said PME Asst. Prof Tian Zhong, one of the instructors involved with Quickstart. “Early quantum education is an important part of building a pipeline for future quantum workforce.”

For 16-year-old Aidan Yen, that quantum weirdness was part of the appeal.

“It defies what your brain believes to be true,” Yen said. “And that was just really interesting and intriguing.”

PME Asst. Prof. Hannes Bernien said he was impressed by how well the young engineers take to the material and understand both its contradictions and potential.

“I believe that, for future generations, the aspects that seem counterintuitive to us will just seem natural,” Bernien said.

‘Better than words’

The week’s activities included lectures by UChicago PME and UChicago Physics faculty and lab tours, but also live science and engineering demonstrations, a weeklong taste of dorm life, a downtown Chicago boat tour, and a mini version of the beloved yearly UChicago scavenger hunt, Scav.

The goal is to channel students’ interest in quantum into excitement. For his Quantum Quickstart lecture, PME Asst. Prof. Shuolong Yang brought members of his lab to help demonstrate superconducting quantum levitation, in which materials float unsupported in the air.

“An engaging demo experiment can convey the excitement of my field much better than words,” Yang said. “When superconductors float over magnetic tracks, the macroscopic quantum phenomenon does not need any technical concepts to make a statement.”

Bringing the high school students to UChicago PME’s Hyde Park campus also has unexpected side benefits, Beadle said.

“While in the middle of doing lab tours of the research labs in PME, the group stumbled upon the Chicago Quantum Exchange’s Undergraduate Research Symposium. Since the large cohort was split into smaller tour groups, the students were able to periodically sit in on research presentations,” Beadle said. “Let me tell you, the students were excited about listening to current research! I think this speaks to the importance of exposure and creating lines of access.”

But for the students themselves, some of the compelling connections made were between science-minded teenagers.

“I’m sitting in a room of 22 other kids, and sometimes more. I could have a conversation with them and they would teach me things I don’t know. And maybe I’d teach them something that they didn't know,” Krohn said. “The conversations wouldn’t necessarily be only about quantum, but we connected through quantum.”

In 2011, UChicago created the Institute of Molecular Engineering, with a core focus on quantum science and technology. In 2015, The Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering became the first school of molecular engineering in the country and the first to offer a PhD in Quantum Engineering. The investment and research have only continued – with discoveries in trapped atom arrays, phonon-based quantum computing, quantum networks and using quantum techniques to build semiconductors. PME already is investing in new faculty and additional state-of-the-art quantum laboratories to come online within the next five years.

Quantum Quickstart is just one of the many programs offered at UChicago Summer that allow students to learn and engage.

• Learn more about UChicago’s Summer Session programs