Apply Now: Quantum Ideas Summer School

On June 17-21, 2019, Duke University’s Software-Tailored Architectures for Quantum Codesign (STAQ) will host the Quantum Ideas Summer School. This event will cover topics including quantum computation, algorithms for near-term devices, and quantum error correction as well as hardware tutorials.

Lectures are scheduled from several quantum experts:

  • Ken Brown (Duke University)
  • Fred Chong (University of Chicago)
  • Jungsang Kim (Duke University)
  • Peter Love (Tufts University)
  • Iman Marvian (Duke University)
  • Akimasa Miyake (University of New Mexico)
  • Hanhee Paik (IBM)

The program is open to undergraduates. graduate students, and industry professionals. The application deadline is March 15, 2019. Please see the program website for more information and application instructions.

Looking inside 18th Century Ivory Mannequins

Duke’s Shared Materials Instrumentation Facility (SMIF) is working with conservationists at Rubenstein Library to carefully image anatomical models that have been housed behind glass since the 1950s. Once the original has been scanned, researchers use a 3D printer to create a plastic replica. The model can be handled to prevent damage to the original. To learn more, visit the recent news feature or watch the video describing the process.

Girls STEM Day @ Duke Fuels the STEM Pipeline

On Saturday, May 19th, Girl Scouts and their families traveled to Duke University to learn from and work with over 100 women in STEM careers across the Triangle. Girl Scouts earned badges in digital photography, forensics, and robotics through a variety of different activities including use of SMIF’s scanning electron microscope. In a parallel parents forum, female STEM professionals, high school college counselors and university admissions counselors engaged parents and troop leaders in interactive panel discussions. To learn more about the event and see more photos, read Duke’s News Release.

Participants earning the digital photography badge were charged with imaging samples that they collected with both light and electron microscopes. These ranged from a flower petal (below image top) to a bagel (below image bottom).

 

 

Making Metamaterials a Household Name

Metamaterials are artificially structured materials used to control and manipulate light, sound, and many other physical phenomena. They became famous for their use in the creation of an “invisibility cloak”. A recent article in Duke Stories describes the history of metamaterials development and how researchers at Duke are striving to make them a household name. Read more here.