Samuel D. Escribano defends his ICMM-UAM thesis: "I am in favor of in-depth science, but sometimes that comes at a cost for young researchers"

The young man, whose thesis has been supervised by Elsa Prada (ICMM) and Alfredo Levy Yeyati (UAM), explains how his work is very important for the advancement of quantum computing.

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It's December at the Institute of Materials Science and there are several defenses of doctoral theses. Among them, that of Samuel D. Escribano, who this December 16 defends his project at the Faculty of Sciences of the UAM after years under the supervision of the ICMM scientist Elsa Prada and the professor of the Autonomous University of Madrid Alfredo Levy Yeyati, both specialists in Condensed Matter Physics.

Under the title 'Towards a realistic description of topological hybrid semiconductor, superconductor and ferromagnetic insulator systems', this 27-year-old defends a work that has had a novel point of view. "What I have tried to do is to model as realistically as possible a type of nanostructures, hybrid nanostructures made up of semiconductors, superconductors and ferromagnets", he points out.

Explaining his thesis in more informative terms, the young researcher begins by setting the context: "We know that there are insulating materials, which do not transmit at all; conductors, which transmit it; semiconductors, which, depending on the voltage difference they admit, transmit current or not and , others more exotic, the superconductors, which transmit electricity without resistance". The scientist starts from this base to go to the nanoscopic scale: "If you take a semiconductor nanowire with low resistance and cover it with different types of materials (superconductors or ferromagnetics), the question is what type of transport do you have in that system where they mix so many different types of electronic transport, because there appear states of matter that are exotic, that have applications for quantum computing, and so on."

Where does this lead us? Escribano explains it this way: "What my thesis pursues is to describe it realistically through equations." The result has been very interesting, as the researcher has managed to understand how the states of these nanowires can be controlled with electrostatic potentials "to push the electron that travels through the wire closer to the ferromagnetic material and the superconductor [that cover it], at the same time so that they acquire both properties," he says.

It is a theoretical doctoral thesis but very focused on the experimental part: "We have a very large collaboration with the experimental groups, because we try to really describe the experiments, to be able to predict what they obtain and try to suggest how to do them," comments. In this regard, he points out that the group he has worked with is, in fact, collaborating directly with Microsoft to create a quantum computer based on the technology he is studying. "Microsoft is a bit far from IBM's quantum computing because they've gone for more complex technology that, if it works, should be much better," he says.

Still, science is not an easy path, and he knows it: "Tough times are ahead." As soon as he defends his thesis, he will have to continue working to achieve the steps he has set for himself: do another postdoctoral stay in the Netherlands and be able to return to Spain. "The return will be difficult, now is the time to work hard," he says. He does not complain about the job, but he does complain about the system that surrounds the scientific career: "You have to be very competitive, although it is true that the ICMM and the UAM give you a very good base, in the end I need to publish many articles and create a network of contacts".

"You have to work on your/their egos, assert yourself, not step on others but be on top of it, get the job done faster than another group...", lists the young researcher. "Science should be calm, you should have time to analyze the details," he says convinced, lamenting that lately, he sees "a lot of marketing" in the scientific world: "There are research groups with which I have to compete that sometimes publish articles that are more of the same. They do research without going into detail, just to give the main message of something. That's what I don't want to be, I'm in favor of doing in-depth science, but that has a cost for the young researcher".