Lessons Learned

LESSONS LEARNED Quantum Endeavors

By Drew Gieseke Photos by sean garcia at Washington university

Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis learned last month that they’d been awarded a $3 million investment from the National Science Foundation to fund a new program designed to boost the metro area’s quantum science workforce. While the win is still fresh, the esteemed institution has big plans for the money – and for the future of science, technology, engineering and math research in the area.

“It’s a large grant that’s focused on graduate training,” says Sophia Hayes, vice dean of graduate education and professor of chemistry at Wash U. “Think of it like venture capital for trying out a new way to enhance our Ph.D. candidates.”

Known as Linking Quantum Sensing Technologies across Disciplines (LinQ-STL for short), the five-year program will connect research efforts among Wash U, the University of Missouri-St. Louis, Saint Louis University and Harris-Stowe State University. LinQ-STL is designed to better prepare students to enter and participate in the field of quantum sensing, which requires detailed knowledge of physics, chemistry and engineering, according to a Wash U press release.

Researchers use quantum sensor technology that relies on the unique physical properties of nature at the atomic and subatomic levels to detect phenomena that people can’t perceive without specialized equipment.

“We know from basic physics that there should be these quantum physics capabilities, but we need chemists and engineers to get everybody there,” Hayes says. “Quantum sensing has the ability to develop new technologies that, even though the physics is known, it takes some smart people to think of different ways to use these new ideas.”

Hayes says that around their fourth year, graduate students begin thinking about their next move. Not all of them want to become professors, so LinQ-STL will provide the infrastructure for doctoral candidates to apply for internships in partner research labs and even private businesses to forge interdisciplinary connections that help them leverage their expertise and enhance their research.

“We’ve had ideas for ways to better train our students,” Hayes adds. “You can say there’s this idea to do it, but when there’s money behind it, that makes all the difference in the world.”

The 100 students who are expected to participate in the LinQ-STL project will focus on three areas: “looking out” beyond the Earth and into the universe to develop new observational tools, “looking in” to the microscopic realm and “looking where we cannot yet see” to identify “unmeasured domains” like dark matter.

But LinQ-STL’s efforts will reach far beyond the laboratory or classroom. One final component of the program is to identify new ways to diversify the scientific workforce. Hayes and her colleagues see the funding and collaborative approach as an opportunity to train and develop a sophisticated network of researchers and companies in the metro area. The thinking is that as quantum technologies emerge, so too will the workforce behind them.

“If more companies thought this was a place that had trained scientists and science communicators to talk about this,” Hayes notes, “it can be an economic driver for the region.” ln

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Source: The 2022 Forbes “America’ s Top Women Wealth Advisors” list, February 4, 2022. Data provided by SHOOK® Research, LLC. Data as of 9/30/21. Forbes.com (February, 2022). America’ s Top Women Advisors ranking was developed by SHOOK Research and is based on in-person, virtual and telephone due diligence meetings to evaluate each advisor qualitatively, a major component of a ranking algorithm that includes: client impact, industry experience, review of best practices and compliance records, firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, including: assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion because client objectives and risk tolerances vary, and advisors rarely have audited performance reports. SHOOK’s research and rankings provide opinions intended to help investors choose the right financial advisor and are not indicative of future performance or representative of any one client’s experience. Past performance is not an indication of future results. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK Research receive compensation in exchange for placement on the ranking. For more information, please see www.SHOOKresearch.com. SHOOK is a registered trademark of SHOOK Research, LLC. Data provided by SHOOK® Research, LLC. Data as of 6/30/21. Source: Forbes.com (April, 2022). Forbes Best-in-State Wealth Advisors ranking was developed by SHOOK Research and is based on in-person, virtual, and telephone due diligence meetings to measure best practices; also considered are: client retention, industry experience, credentials, review of compliance records, firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, such as: assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion because client objectives and risk tolerances vary, and advisors rarely have audited performance reports. SHOOK’s research and rankings provide opinions intended to help investors choose the right financial advisor and are not indicative of future performance or representative of any one client’s experience. Past performance is not an indication of future results. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK Research receive compensation in exchange for placement on the ranking. Rankings are based on the opinions of Forbes and not representative nor indicative of any one client’s experience, future performance, or investment outcome and should not be construed as an endorsement of the advisor. For more information, please see www.SHOOKresearch.com. SHOOK is a registered trademark of SHOOK Research, LLC. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (also referred to as “MLPF&S” or “Merrill”) makes available certain investment products sponsored, managed, distributed or provided by companies that are affiliates of Bank of America Corporation (“BofA Corp.”). MLPF&S is a registered broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, Member SIPC and a wholly owned subsidiary of BofA Corp. Banking products are provided by Bank of America, N.A., Member FDIC and a wholly owned subsidiary of BofA Corp. Investment products: Are Not FDIC Insured Are Not Bank Guaranteed May Lose Value