Alec Yen

Alec Yen

MIT PhD Student in EECS

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

I am a final-year PhD candidate in MIT’s EECS department, where my research focuses on measurement architectures for superconducting qubits. My work combines circuit design, device physics, and system-level engineering to address the performance and scalability limits of today’s quantum hardware. This has included developing directional resonators for more uniform readout, interferometric Purcell filters that eliminate the need for added components, and a new “arm qubit” architecture that enables ultrafast, high-fidelity, and high-QND readout in tens of nanoseconds.

As I complete my PhD, I’m looking forward to applying this expertise to the practical challenges of building scalable, fault-tolerant quantum hardware.

Research Projects

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Ultrafast quantum measurement
High-fidelity, high-QND qubit readout in tens of nanoseconds.
Ultrafast quantum measurement
Qubit protection using interference
Built-in suppression of spontaneous emission in a planar architecture.
Qubit protection using interference
Scaling quantum measurement
A superconducting resonator that directionally emits measurement photons encoded with qubit information.
Scaling quantum measurement
Terahertz circuits to enable integrated molecular clocks
A 220-320 GHz waveguide made from a silicon wafer.
Terahertz circuits to enable integrated molecular clocks
Fast and efficient integrated circuits
A new and improved low-power op amp in a 180nm CMOS process.
Fast and efficient integrated circuits
Neuromorphic self-balancing robot
Two-wheeled self-balancing robot using spiking neural networks and evolutionary optimization.
Neuromorphic self-balancing robot
Through-the-windshield driver recognition
Driver recognition using RCNN, GAN, HDR imaging, and image fusion.
Through-the-windshield driver recognition

Experience

 
 
 
 
 
MIT
PhD Student
MIT
August 2020 – Present Cambridge, MA
Designing superconducting quantum hardware for fast, high-fidelity operations, enabling scalable quantum error correction.
 
 
 
 
 
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Undergraduate Researcher
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
August 2017 – August 2020 Knoxville, TN
Specialized in RF/analog circuit design and electromagnetic simulation.
 
 
 
 
 
Garmin International
Design Intern
Garmin International
May 2019 – August 2019 Olathe, KS
Designing power electronics and RF circuits for Aviation and Avionics Group.
 
 
 
 
 
TENNLab Research Center
Undergraduate Researcher
TENNLab Research Center
August 2018 – May 2019 Knoxville, TN
Designed and built the fully neuromorphic two-wheeled, self-balancing robot.
 
 
 
 
 
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Research Intern
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
June 2018 – August 2019 Oak Ridge, TN
Specialized in facial recognition and computer vision. Designed and implemented fast-moving vehicle security portal.

Recent Publications

Near-ultrastrong nonlinear light-matter coupling in superconducting circuits
Near-ultrastrong nonlinear light-matter coupling in superconducting circuits
Interferometric Purcell suppression of spontaneous emission in a superconducting qubit
In superconducting qubits, suppression of spontaneous emission is essential to achieve fast dispersive measurement and reset without …
Interferometric Purcell suppression of spontaneous emission in a superconducting qubit
Directional emission of a readout resonator for qubit measurement
We propose and demonstrate transmission-based dispersive readout of a superconducting qubit using an all-pass resonator, which …
Directional emission of a readout resonator for qubit measurement

Contact Me

alecyen@mit.edu