Intern Experience - Abishek Sahu
Summer Intern Experience 2018 - Abishek Sahu
Prof. Arun Kumar Pati, HRI Allahabad
I was accepted by apping first, and the logistics were taken care of by the Visiting Summer Program in Physics.
What were you working on?
I worked on what is called the resource theory of coherence.
With the Bell's theorem and it's experimental verification, it was established that Quantum Mechanics is indeed a theory with no classical counterparts. This led to the second quantum revolution, in which a careful enquiry was launched into identification of essential quantum phenomena. This was accompanied by usage of these properties for developing quantum computers and other technologies. It was clear that entanglement and superposition are the essential features or resources that gave these new technologies an advantage over their classical analogues. Around the 90s a proper theory was built around this idea, that quantified the 'resourcefulness' of entanglement. The set of entanglement-free states and transformations that could not create any entanglement were declared free and the others were accompanied with some 'cost' for the amount of 'entanglement resource' they created. The importance of this theory could be seen in characterising the set of states or transformations that could accomplish a particular job with the least cost. After the successful development of entanglement as a resource, other similar resource theories followed, such as resource theory of coherence (superposition), thermodynamics, asymmetry etc.
My work was in the area of resource theory of coherence, where I was trying to find trade-off relationships between information gain from a quantum measurement and loss of coherence or superposition from a generic quantum state.
This subject is of a foundational nature and is aimed at developing a proper understanding, advantages and limitations of quantum theory. At the interface of Quantum information theory and Quantum Foundations, this gives you an opportunity to contribute to fundamental understanding of Quantum Mechanics, and also use it in something of an immediate value.
Workload and tools used
My work was mostly theoretical. A pen and a paper was all I needed.
Essential skills required were- familiarity with Quantum Mechanics, theory of open quantum systems, quantum measurements, sound grasp on Linear algebra, optimisation techniques, and generic algebraic manipulation skills like handling inequalities etc.
Courses that were relevant
QM-1, Quantum Information and Quantum Computing.
What did you learn during the internship?
The important thing to look forward to during a research internship, is meeting new people!
In an internship, or during coursework, it's difficult to gain an idea about the landscape of current research. I found that by talking to random PhD/ Post docs over coffee, I learnt a lot about the nature of research happening currently, and probably more than what my guide could tell me.
You also get to know about the opportunities you have in future.
Moreover having friends never hurts.😊
What are the places that you visited?
Allahabad is a dry city and I personally think it's devoid of the kind of fun we may have in Mumbai.
However, the food here is quite good. If you are a non-vegan, you are up for some good Lucknauvi cuisine.
There are a few places of historical and natural importance in and around, such as Anand Bhawan, and the Triveni Sangam. The Yamuna river has a lot of water and you can go swim there.
About 100kms from Allahabad, there is Banaras, which is a great place to see, with its beautiful ghats and Archaeological sites like Sarnath.
Lucknow is about 3 hrs by road from Allahabad, and there are a great many places to see here.
It's a bit difficult here during the summer season because of the high temperature, but the evenings are quite pleasant, and the mangoes are great!
Contact details
abhisek141.explorer@gmail.com
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