Software Engineer at ETHZ-PSI Quantum Computing Hub

The ETH Zurich - PSI Quantum Computing Hub explores and solves long-standing challenges in quantum computing. It develops new technology and approaches which benefit from a coherent, farsighted vision, and it provides services to the quantum community through collaborations with academia and industry. The Quantum Computing Hub hosts two laboratories which specialize in the two leading quantum computing platforms: superconducting circuits and trapped ions.

The Quantum Computing Hub operates quantum computing systems with tens of qubits, including their control, calibration, automation and execution systems.  The experimental control software developed at the Quantum Computing Hub maps high-level user input, such as quantum algorithms and calibration routines, to low-level operations and commands that are sent to a range of physical hardware in the laboratories which controls the quantum devices. This hardware includes tens of synchronized RF- and DC-signal sources, arbitrary waveform generators, and rapid digital and analog data acquisition systems.

The quantum systems operated at the Quantum Computing Hub are rapidly scaling up in complexity: in the upcoming stages of development, the team targets the development of systems with about one hundred qubits. This scale-up comes with a range of challenges, as the surrounding infrastructure for controlling the qubits grows in complexity.

The project is defined for 3 years with a fixed term employment of 12 months, with an option of extension for another 12 months.

To take on these challenges, you will contribute to the Quantum Computing Hub’s software systems in several directions:

• Improve the Quantum Computing Hub’s existing infrastructure to reach a high level of automation for calibration and measurement routines.
• Steer the Quantum Computing Hub’s systems towards a design for testability and increase the test coverage of the existing codebases to improve the stability and reliability.
• Bridge the gap towards higher abstraction levels by integrating the Quantum Computing Hub’s quantum systems with standard quantum programming software such as Qiskit/ProjectQ/Cirq.

You will join the superconducting circuits team and will closely collaborate with the Quantum Device Lab at ETH Zurich, which conducts state of the art experimental research in quantum information science and has a long-standing, excellent track record in developing and operating quantum computing systems based on superconducting circuits.

You will:

• Contribute to the coordination of the software development effort at the Quantum Computing Hub.
• Contribute to defining strategies for dealing with legacy code and for balancing the tradeoff between fast-paced progress and stability/reliability, which exists in a highly innovative and competitive environment.
• Perform hands-on work on the Python framework for quantum experiment automation, such as building infrastructure for data collection, implementing instrument drivers, automating calibration routines, developing visualization tools and more.
• Implement and execute tests on emulated systems and on real state-of-the-art quantum computers.
• Advocate for best practices (code reviews, version control, coding standards, documentation, testing, debugging, CI/CD).

Your profile:

• Master’s degree or PhD in computer science, software engineering or related field.
• Strong knowledge of object-oriented programming,
• Knowledge of Python.
• Experience with version control.
• Prior professional experience in software engineering, software architecture and API design, or software project management is an asset, but we also encourage applications of career starters.
• Prior experience in the field of quantum technologies is an asset, but not required.
• Excellent English communication skills, both oral and written.

What the Quantum Computing Hub has to offer:

• a stimulating interdisciplinary environment at ETH Zurich and PSI
• an opportunity to drive the rapidly developing field of quantum computing technology
• an opportunity to work with state-of-the-art quantum computing setups
• an opportunity to guide and execute development tasks which combine software architecture and design challenges with the state-of-the-art physics
• exposure to a wide range of challenges and learning opportunities in an exciting research setting
• possibility to contribute to open-source projects and/or to scientific papers.