2021 - Physicus Minimus

Superluminal Elf Radio

23/12/202123/12/2021SabrinaLeave a comment

Santa’s gift tour is a headache for children every year: How does he manage to visit every child in the world in a single night? But Santa’s travel speed is not the only problem. I wonder: how does he know if the child whose chimney, balcony or front door he is standing in front of has been naughty or nice? Does he carry around the naughty-nice-list in paper form? Is he in radio contact with the North Pole? Or does he have a completely different method? We will ask the question: Is communication faster than the speed of light possible?

Academia

Science Slam – Battle of the Nerds

30/11/202105/01/2022SabrinaLeave a comment

I am the German Vice-Champion in Science Slam 2021! I’m really happy and think this is a great opportunity to take you with me into the world of the Science Slam. Hopefully, I can answer some of the most frequently asked questions about Science Slam and maybe I can motivate some of you to venture on stage and share your hard-earned research with the world.

How to PhD

A whiff of stress – the doctoral thesis

29/10/202120/02/2023Sabrina1 Comment

It’s been a bit quiet on my blog for the last few months, but finally I have some good news: my thesis is finished! Yippee yay, it’s done! Today I want to review the process with you, tell you about my experiences, think a bit outside the box and tell you why it’s not over yet.

How to PhD

From Physicus Minimus to Physicus Maximus

30/08/202130/08/2021SabrinaLeave a comment

Facebook surprised me this week with a reminder: seven years ago, I submitted my Bachelor’s thesis. Seven years – time flies! And almost exactly seven years later, I’ll be handing in my doctoral thesis. I’m in the absolute final sprint right now (keep your fingers crossed for me). I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for a little review: What has changed in the last seven years? What was the path like from the Bachelor’s degree, through the Master’s, into the doctoral studies, (almost) all the way to the Ph.D.? Am I really smarter now than seven years ago?

Academia / How to PhD

Doctor-What? Career fair with Dr. Doom, Dr. No and Co.

20/06/202120/06/2021Sabrina3 Comments

My PhD is slowly coming to an end and I thought this is the perfect time to take you to the heart of the matter. In my series “How to PhD”, I would like to show you different aspects of my life as a physics PhD student, and today I’m getting down to the nitty-gritty: What exactly does it mean to do a PhD? What exactly do I have to do to get it? And also in the context of the current #IchBinHanna debate in Germany: Is this all above board?

Quantum technologies / Quantum world

FAQ: Quantum Computer

13/05/202113/05/2021Sabrina1 Comment

Everyone is talking about quantum computers. Do you sometimes feel like you’ve missed the boat and no longer dare to ask how a quantum computer actually works and what it’s supposed to be good for? Then my blog series “FAQ: Quantum Computer” is for you! Many news articles on quantum computing do not (or no longer) go into sufficient detail about the new quantum machines, which quickly leads to misunderstandings and confusion.
I have gone into the details of the “miracle machines” in three articles. Here you will find an overview of the questions I have tried to answer – including a short version of the answer.

Quantum technologies / Quantum world

FAQ: Quantum Computer – From classical to quantum computer

25/04/202101/03/2024Sabrina1 Comment

The quantum computer as the holy grail: with it everything will be better, everything will be faster, unsolvable problems will become child’s play, banks beware – your encryption is finished! Is that really the case? In what are quantum computers really better than classical computers and in what are they perhaps not? In my series “FAQ: Quantum Computers” series, I try to clear up common misconceptions and erase question marks. This is the last part of the series and it’s about the differences between classical and quantum computers.

Quantum technologies / Quantum world

FAQ: Quantum Computer – From Qubit to Quantum Computer

14/03/202125/04/2021Sabrina5 Comments

Many articles on quantum computing are rushing quite a lot. “A qubit can be in the states 0 and 1 at the same time, and that’s why quantum computers are better than classical ones.” Sure…? Um, no, that was a bit too quick. In my series “FAQ: Quantum computer” I try to clear up common misconceptions and erase question marks. This article is about how to make a quantum computer out of many qubits.

Quantum technologies / Quantum world

FAQ: Quantum Computer – From Bit to Qubit

26/02/202114/03/2021Sabrina4 Comments

Quantum computers bring quantum physics into the spotlight. Because tech giants as Google, IBM, Microsoft, and Amazon are all over them, they are the talk of the town. In addition to scientific journals, daily newspapers and gossip magazines also report on qubits and their friends. Quantum computers are always explained “simply and compactly”. I could also write an article like this, but more specifically, I would like to address the misunderstandings and confusion that such articles often cause. This is not (necessarily) the fault of the authors because no one can adequately explain quantum physics in 5000 characters. Others, however, blatantly sell the quantum computer as a holy grail or Pandora’s box. As so often, the truth lies somewhere in the between.