‘The biggest misconception in my field in general is that physics is hard and dominated by a bunch of white male intellectuals,’ said Dr Joshua Heath.
Dr Joshua Heath is a Research Ireland Pathway Fellow at Maynooth University, where his research focuses on highly correlated superconductors, complex quantum simulation and the development of optimal hardware for next-generation quantum machines.
Heath completed his PhD in physics at Boston College before moving on to his first postdoctoral position at Dartmouth College to research universal scaling laws in electron-phonon superconductivity.
After this, he held joint positions at the University of Connecticut and at the Nordic Institute for Theoretical Physics in Sweden, continuing his excellence work, focusing on the role of two-level system defects (TLSs) in superconducting quantum computing hardware.
What inspired you to become a researcher?
I think the boundary between a researcher and a non-researcher is thin. I think all people, young and old, have an innate desire to learn about the world around them.
For me, choosing to better understand physics by taking up a formal research position is not something that distinguishes me from someone doing any other job.
The researcher takes the easy way out – instead of valuing work in accordance with the natural human desire to know the world around him, a person who devotes his work to scientific research can engage in this highest human need without fear of neglecting the needs necessary to get a decent salary.
Regarding physics compared to other sciences, I chose physics because of its ubiquity. I can understand (or at least try to understand) some general biological systems with basic physical principles, but I can’t use basic biological processes to understand a particular general physical system.
There is uncertainty in physics research – the ability to always go back to a career you like and start something new without relearning the entire toolkit. By taking a physics career path, I give myself the freedom to explore a wide range of problems.
Can you tell us about the research you are currently working on?
My work sits at the intersection of two main areas of physics – condensed matter physics and quantum information.
Condensed matter physics focuses on the properties of matter in the solid and liquid phases. What is interesting about condensed matter physics is that the things we use in our daily lives (such as the transistors in our phones) are defined by very complex physical principles.
Condensed matter physicists study many different types of materials, but the central focus of my work revolves around a class of materials known as “superconductors”.
When cooled below the critical temperature, the electrical resistance of superconductors drops to zero, and any magnets present within the material are repelled. This makes superconductivity a very interesting phenomenon to study, and we are still trying to fully understand it.
In addition to condensed matter physics, I also work on quantum information theory. The main goal of quantum information is to create a quantum computer – a device that uses internal quantum mechanical phenomena to process information and perform complex calculations.
My main research at Maynooth concerns how interesting objects can be used to make quantum computers, and how the limitations of classical computers (and, thus, the power of quantum computing) can be understood through the lens of similar interesting objects.
For example, one promising candidate for quantum computing hardware is superconducting quantum circuits, where the basic component of the computer is made of materials made of superconductors. Of similar and related interest to me are the questions of quantum measurement: what systems are difficult to simulate in a classical computer, and if this “difficulty” can be connected to the fundamental concepts of “quantity” in a many-body system.
Right now, my team (or rather, incoming team) is a little small – I have a Master’s student and a PhD student coming in early fall, and I’ll be working with a few graduate students first this summer. My goal is to have each member of my team have a sharp focus, so that they become experts in their specific problems.
In your opinion, why is your research important?
I think this is a tricky question. Important means different things to different people, and my work is not going to change most people’s daily lives.
Regarding any influence beyond my immediate community, the most important thing my research can do would be to spread interest in many electron phases of matter.
Ultimately, my job is to inspire the next generation of scientists to see a simple hunk of boring metal and feel the urge to understand that endless ocean.
Regarding quantum matter and quantum information communities in particular, I think my research is important because it builds a bridge between these two subfields. In this way, I hope my group can lead to a more connected and comprehensive understanding of quantum phenomena.
What commercial applications do you foresee for your research?
Regarding commercial applications, I prefer to think about applications that will improve humanity, rather than those that will make a profit. Regarding such applications, I can think of two that I find very interesting – better medicine and the production of pure ammonia.
Drug discovery requires highly accurate simulations of molecular interactions and chemical reactions, and it is hoped within the field that quantum computers will be able to simulate the complex electron behavior that characterizes these molecules.
However, in any application given above, we need high-quality quantum circuits to perform these expensive calculations, and preparing these high-quality circuits is a resource-heavy task.
I think the best way to deal with these problems in the short term is to understand the basic features that make a multi-electron system (such as large biomolecules) “hard” to simulate on an old computer, and then avoid them while using old hardware or somehow exploit this “hardness” as a resource.
What are some of the biggest challenges you face as a researcher in your field?
I think there are two main challenges. On the technical side, I would say that computing power is a big problem. We often need to turn to numbers to do many-body calculations, so we often need large (primitive) computers to help us.
Unfortunately, these large computers are very demanding, so we have to apply for computer time, and sometimes this leads to delays in getting results.
The second major challenge will be the proliferation of AI among students. There have always been online solutions for many problems at the college level, but now there is a big problem with students using AI to completely solve a difficult problem at the push of a button.
I’ve seen students with AI write every code or do every project I’ve given them, and if this continues I believe a whole generation of students will start to lose their physical consciousness.
Are there any common misconceptions about this area of research?
There are many misconceptions about physics and quantum computing in general. In quantum computing, I think the worst misconception is that “quantum computers will change the world”.
There is currently not a single widely accepted and definitive example where a quantum computer has outperformed a classical computer. Conversely, within condensed matter physics, I think there must be more misconceptions.
Common misconceptions are a sign that society is thinking about serious issues and is interested in the world around them. We need more crackpot theories for semiconductors.
Finally, I would say that the biggest misconception in my field in general is that physics is hard and dominated by a bunch of white male intellectuals.
Continuing this belief will do nothing but continue the “leaky pipeline” of young people (especially young women and members of the LGBTQIA+ community) to look elsewhere for their career goals. Physics is about the universe: the toolbox of physics can define the universe, and anyone in the universe can pick up the tool.
What are some of the research areas you would like to see addressed in the coming years?
It is always difficult to make predictions. It’s often the abstract ideas in physics that have the most lasting impact, and knowing which problems are best can be trivial.
One thing I would like to see is a practical approach to quantum computing. Physicist John Preskill said that we are in the NISQ era – the era of intermediate scale quantum (NISQ) devices. I think we’re going to be stuck in the NISQ era for a while, and instead of trying to work towards an era of fault-tolerant quantum computers we should instead make the most of our time with what we have, for example by integrating NISQ-era technology into today’s biomedical pipelines.
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