Applied Physics/Physics Colloquium (Shoucheng Zhang Lecture) : Charles Marcus - " 4e Superconductivity, Protected Qubits, and Flat-Band Systems"

Abstract:This talk will discuss Josephson junction networks from the double-junction SQUID to the frustrated dice-lattice array, examining aspects of 4e superconductivity leading to flat bands and opening a route to protected Josephson qubits. The experiments take advantage of superconductor-semiconductor hybrid materials.

Prof. Charles M. Marcus is a leading experimental physicist specializing in quantum coherent electronics, condensed matter physics, and quantum information science. In April 2023, he joined the University of Washington as the Boeing Johnson Endowed Chair in Materials Science & Engineering and Professor of Physics. Prior to this, Prof. Marcus held faculty positions at Stanford and Harvard Universities, where he also directed the Harvard Center for Nanoscale Systems. In 2012, he became the Villum Kann Rasmussen Professor at the Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, and served as Director of the Center for Quantum Devices. From 2016 to 2021, he was the Scientific Director of Microsoft Quantum Lab–Copenhagen. His research focuses on developing quantum devices using hybrid semiconductor-superconductor systems, exploring topological states of matter, and advancing quantum computing technologies. Prof. Marcus is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and a foreign member of the Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters. He has received numerous accolades, including the H.C. Ørsted Gold Medal in Physics.