Postdoctoral Spotlight: Herschel Chawdhry
Herschel Chawdhry is a level I research faculty member in Florida State University’s Department of Physics, part of the College of Arts and Sciences. His research is at the intersection of two fields: high-energy physics, which studies the fundamental particles constituting matter and the forces governing their behavior, and quantum computing, which seeks to use quantum physics to perform faster information processing. He was recently awarded a $755,000 grant alongside physics professor Fernando Febres Cordero and Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor Laura Reina as part of a $7 million U.S. Department of Energy Quantum Technology Outposts initiative to enable scientific breakthroughs using quantum technology. After Chawdhry earned his doctorate in high-energy physics from the University of Cambridge in England in 2020, he researched particle physics theory as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oxford in England for three years before coming to FSU in 2023. In 2026, he was promoted from postdoctoral researcher to research faculty.
Tell us about your background and what brought you to FSU.
I grew up in England and Italy, studied physics at university, and did my doctorate in high-energy physics. I came to FSU because it has one of the top groups in the U.S. for my topic of research.
What inspired you to choose your field?
Particle physics is exciting because it studies the smallest and most fundamental building blocks of our world. Asking what everything is made of may seem like a simple question, but answering it requires huge and exciting experiments — including the biggest machines in the world — to probe nature at the shortest distances and study the fundamental forces and basic particles that make up our universe.
Break down your areas of research for us.
I specialize in making high-precision predictions about what happens inside high-energy particle colliders, like the Large Hadron Collider — the world’s largest and most powerful particle accelerator — located at the European Organization for Nuclear Research laboratory, or CERN, near Geneva, Switzerland. By comparing these predictions with precise measurements from the LHC, we can better understand the properties of fundamental particles, and perhaps even spot the first signs of new particles awaiting discovery.
In recent years, I’ve also begun exploring ways to use quantum computers, machines that exploit fundamental laws of quantum mechanics to perform certain calculations much faster than large supercomputers, to improve the speed or precision of these predictions. An important part of my research is to understand which parts of a high-precision calculation could be the most amenable to quantum computing and how best to design quantum algorithms to implement these in practice.
What makes you passionate about your research?
It boils down to the curiosity of finding the basic building blocks of matter, understanding their properties and predicting their behavior. There’s also a curiosity to experiment with new ideas and technologies, which leads to scientific discoveries and further technological innovation.
Tell us how researching theoretical particle physics led you to quantum information.
During my time in England, a colleague and I began a side project to explore potential ways to use a hypothetical quantum computer to calculate predictions at high-energy particle colliders.
At the time, we validated our quantum algorithms by using classical computer simulations, but through Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, we were able to run tests and demonstrations on a real quantum computer. A year after I arrived at FSU, I successfully applied for a substantial time allocation on these quantum computers, and this unparalleled access has been pivotal for my research.
What do you want the public to know about the importance of your research?
It’s an exciting time for high-energy physics and quantum computing research. The LHC is getting a big upgrade to make measurements with a higher precision than ever before, and quantum computers are quickly advancing in capability. Many countries, including the U.S., intend to build a scientifically useful, error-corrected quantum computer by 2028. Now is the perfect time to develop quantum algorithms and scientific techniques to ensure we’re positioned to access the full benefits of these unique machines as they emerge.
Tell us about being a co-PI on the DOE grant with professors Fernando Febres Cordero and Laura Reina.
Starting this month, the grant provides $755,000 across three years, and I’m delighted as it’s my first major research grant. Building this research program has been exciting yet daunting, so I’m grateful to the DOE and its panel of expert reviewers for their vote of confidence in my research plans. I’m also very grateful to Fernando and Laura for encouraging me to apply for the grant in the first place and for their invaluable refinements to help the grant proposal shine.
What’s your best memory so far at FSU?
Several of us in FSU’s High-Energy Physics group recently visited FSU’s Special Collections and Archives to see the archived documents of Paul Dirac, a Nobel Laureate in physics who moved to FSU from the University of Cambridge in 1972. It’s a fascinating collection with unique items ranging from amusing secondary-school report cards to formerly top-secret World War II correspondence and even Dirac’s original handwritten doctoral thesis, “Quantum Mechanics,” which went on to become the foundation for the fields of particle physics and quantum computing.
Who are your role models? Are there certain people who have influenced you most in your life and career?
I’ve been fortunate to have extremely bright, wise and inspiring advisers throughout my research career, including Cambridge physics professor Alex Mitov, Oxford physics professor Fabrizio Caola, and Fernando and Laura at FSU. I’m grateful for all their advice, support, and encouragement, and I hope in time to offer the same to my own students or postdocs.
What advice would you offer to undergraduate students, graduate students and fellow postdoctoral researchers?
Even in the Florida heat, remember to get regular exercise! As the Romans used to say, mens sana in corpore sano, meaning “a sound mind in a sound body,” and personally I reckon I get my best ideas after going for a run!