BIOE Seminar Series: Associate Professor Jacob Covey

Quantum computing with neutral atoms

Abstract: In this talk, the opportunities and current state of the art in quantum computing will be discussed, with a focus on the neutral atom platform and its unique features and remarkable progress. The talk will also highlight work aimed at reducing the resource costs associated with utility scale quantum algorithms.

Biography: Jake completed his PhD in 2017 under the guidance of Jun Ye and the late Deborah Jin at JILA and the University of Colorado-Boulder and received the Springer Thesis Award. He was then a Richard Chace Tolman Postdoctoral Scholar at Caltech under the guidance of Manuel Endres. He started as an assistant professor in the Department of Physics at UIUC in Fall 2020 and has since pioneered the use of ytterbium-171 atom arrays for quantum computing and networking, long-distance-transportable arrays for modular quantum computing, and metastable helium-3 atom arrays for resource-efficient quantum simulation. He moved to the University of Chicago as an associate professor in July 2026. He is a recipient of the 2022 Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Program, the 2023 Air Force Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator Program, the 2024 National Science Foundation CAREER Award, the 2024 Department of Energy Early Career Program, and the 2026 Sloan Research Fellowship.