Quantum path
An interview with D-PHYS alumna Dr Elisa Bäumer, Research Scientist at IBM Zurich.
What was the decision path that led you to your present job?
I suppose the first decision that put me on this path was to study physics at ETH Zurich after high school, which I chose because I liked both mathematics and physics a lot, and between the two I picked the one allowing me to study something more applied. At university I chose a semester project and later a master thesis in the field of quantum information theory because this area of work was fascinating to me. As I really enjoyed doing research in this field, I decided to continue with a PhD on the same subject. During my PhD I took the opportunity to do an internship at IBM, which was a great experience that led to a rather smooth transition to a job at IBM Quantum once I completed my PhD.
What does your average week look like?
As a researcher in the field of quantum computing, I spend a lot of time doing calculations, both with pen and paper (or the iPad) and on a computer, to derive and optimise new quantum algorithms. I also write code to run quantum algorithms on IBM’s quantum computers, which operate on the cloud. This work leads to results which my colleagues and I typically write up as papers for publication in scientific journals and present at conferences attended by researchers in related fields.
Next to these presentations of my research, I often give talks and workshops to clients, students and scientists with various backgrounds to teach them basic or more advanced topics in quantum computing and help them identify applications in their industry sector or research area.
How did your PhD in physics prepare you for this job? From a professional standpoint, what do you value most of your physics background?
My PhD in quantum information theory laid a good foundation for my research on developing quantum algorithms. Still, there are always many things to learn and my studies at ETH – where I did my bachelor, master and PhD! – prepared me well, because I learned to be persistent when looking for solutions. I really value the deep mathematical understanding I gained as a student at ETH, especially during my physics bachelor's degree, and the ability to approach problems in an analytical way. What's also important is the endurance, that is, the persistence to tackle problems that cannot be solved directly or easily but may require more creative tactics.