DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS DISSERTATION DEFENSE: Michelle Xu

Public zoom link:   https://stanford.zoom.us/j/97706065614?pwd=EkZAbg9krKGrSsYlRKctSYlLb2BARA.1

Password: Email physicsstudentservices [at] stanford.edu (physicsstudentservices[at]stanford[dot]edu) for password

Title: 

Black holes and other pseudorandomness

Abstract:  

Black holes are gravitational objects that have become surprisingly relevant to quantum computation, both in our understanding of error correction and the limits of complexity theory. Pseudorandomness is a computational resource that has become surprisingly applicable to quantum gravity, through the use of toy models and our exploration of chaotic phenomena, e.g. black holes. In this talk, I will discuss the basis of their connection and then dive into recent progress on understanding each individually. First, I will show how some black hole configurations, known as python's lunches, can be productively explored by quantum cryptographic protocols known as non-local quantum computation. Then, I will present novel constructions of pseudorandomness that are inspired by the structure of Hamiltonians chosen from the Gaussian Unitary Ensemble. Given time, at the end I will speculate further on other forms of pseudorandomness that can be constructed via chaotic quantum systems like black holes.