Colloquium – Rhine Samajdar

Rhine Samajdar, Princeton University

Architectures, algorithms, and opportunities for quantum computation

Quantum computers promise transformative advances in science and technology, yet their practical performance is fundamentally limited by noise, errors, and decoherence. In this talk, I will explore how the co-design of quantum hardware and algorithms can unlock new capabilities on today’s non-fault-tolerant quantum devices.
First, focusing on one such computational platform—neutral atom arrays—I will explore the design of a topological qubit and demonstrate how it enables robust quantum information processing. I will then turn to the role of out-of-equilibrium quantum dynamics, demonstrating how such dynamics can be deliberately exploited in both analog systems and quantum circuits with measurement and feedback. These approaches provide scalable methods for state preparation and open new avenues for passive quantum error correction.
Finally, I will address the challenge of achieving quantum speedups for practically relevant, computationally hard problems, a central objective of quantum information science. I will introduce physics-inspired strategies for quantum algorithm design targeting a broad class of graph-based combinatorial optimization problems. These strategies leverage adiabatic evolution as well as extensions beyond the standard adiabatic paradigm, including shortcuts and catalytic techniques.

Bio: Rhine Samajdar is a Princeton Quantum Initiative (PQI) and Princeton Center for Theoretical Science (PCTS) Postdoctoral Fellow at Princeton University. His research interests lie at the interface of quantum information science, condensed matter physics, and atomic, molecular, and optical physics. Prior to joining Princeton, he obtained his PhD in Physics from Harvard University in 2022. His research accomplishments have been recognized with multiple honors, including the 2025 Boeing Quantum Creators Prize and the 2023 Martin & Beate Block Award from the Aspen Center for Physics.

February 2, 2026 @ 3:00pm (CST) in 4309 Stevenson Center

Host: Kalman Varga