SEAS Quantum Initiative
Faculty Recruiting Colloquium
Henry Yuen (University of Toronto)
ABSTRACT:
Entanglement is the famous feature of quantum mechanics where far-away particles can exhibit what Einstein called “spooky correlations” — correlations that cannot be explained by classical physics. Today, the goal to understand, create, and control complex forms of quantum entanglement is expanding the frontiers of physics, computer science, and engineering.
Computer science has provided potent concepts and tools with which to study quantum entanglement. In this talk, I will highlight the power of the computational lens on this physical phenomenon by describing two recent research directions. The first is on the characterization of the complexity of interactive proofs with entanglement, and its consequences for longstanding questions in quantum information and pure mathematics. The second concerns the Quantum PCP Conjecture, a central question about entanglement that connects condensed matter physics, complexity theory, and quantum error correction.
This talk is aimed at a general audience; no background in quantum information will be assumed.
BIO:
Henry Yuen is an assistant professor in the Computer Science and Mathematics departments at the University of Toronto. His research focuses on the interplay between quantum information, complexity theory, and cryptography. He received his PhD in Computer Science from MIT in 2016, and spent two years as a postdoctoral associate at UC Berkeley before joining the University of Toronto in 2018.