Connecting pieces of a quantum computer
Aziza Almanakly works on quantum-computing hardware, including superconducting devices and ways to link separate chips. She describes the challenge of building connections while maintaining the quantum relationships that the system needs. At the interview, she was preparing a new laboratory at NYU and described her faculty appointment as starting that autumn.
The practical work behind the idea
Her account of graduate research includes connecting equipment, working with chips, fixing a setup and programming measurements. Asked about two students in her lab, Almanakly clarifies that they are doctoral researchers helping build the new lab. The conversation makes visible the equipment and teamwork behind an abstract subject.
From calculus to a research lab
A high-school calculus teacher encouraged her interest in mathematics. She chose electrical engineering and kept asking about quantum computing until she found a laboratory working on it. Later, her doctoral adviser made space for her to speak in meetings and supported talks, awards and her faculty application.
Persistence without accepting hostility
Almanakly distinguishes continuing through experiments that do not work from tolerating insults. She contrasts feeling she had to prove herself in undergraduate settings with a welcoming graduate lab. She wants her own lab to give people room to work hard without unnecessary pressure to change who they are.