Lifan Zhang
Research Interest
I majored in atomic and molecular physics at the University of Science and Technology of China. My main research project involved numerically investigating the feasibility of two-qubit gates with Sr-88 Rydberg atoms in high magnetic fields. Currently, I’m fascinated by the interplay of quantum many-body physics, atomic molecular and optical physics, and quantum information science. For example, I’m interested in exploring quantum simulation using ultracold Rydberg atoms or molecules.
I was born and raised in Hefei, and I have never traveled abroad. Since junior high school, I have been fascinated by advanced math and physics, and I have learned some of them on my own. I completed my senior high school in two years and enrolled in USTC to pursue my passion for physics, though I had spent about 1.5 years preparing for math competitions before that. I used to be good at Chinese chess when I was in primary school, but I switched to Go in my first year of college because I found it more challenging. However, I rarely have time to finish a game. I also learned breaststroke and freestyle swimming during my primary school, but only until recently did I discover and correct my serious mistakes and greatly improved speeds. Now I am curious about various interdisciplinary fields, such as geometry, many-body physics, quantum information, machine learning and neuroscience. Finally, I enjoy reading classical literature and historical books, which I wish I had read earlier.