Nathalie de Leon

Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Co-DirectorPrinceton Quantum Initiative

Research interests: Building quantum hardware with color centers in wide bandgap materials, such as NV centers in diamond. Optics and photonics, surface science and materials engineering, atomic and molecular spectroscopy, nanofabrication, and cryogenics.

Electron microscope image of two bars that nearly touch and are connected with a very thin line. — A new Princeton-led NSF quantum institute will focus on reinventing the core component of a superconducting qubit, called the Josephson junction. This false-color microscope image shows a Josephson junction with tantalum capacitors (pink), aluminum electrical leads (purple) and a silicon substrate (blue). Image by Faranak Bahrami

Princeton to lead major federally-funded institute to unlock quantum computing challenges

Small groups, big impact: ‘Clusters’ seek next research frontiers

Laura Futamura and Kalli Zervas, quantum Ph.D. students, lean against each other in a high-tech lab. — Laura Futamura, left, and Kalli Zervas both joined the inaugural cohort of Princeton’s quantum science and engineering Ph.D. program, where students work on a wide range of topics within the emerging field of quantum information. The program is part of Princeton’s Quantum Initiative, co-directed by Nathalie de Leon and Ali Yazdani. Photo by Sameer A. Khan/Fotobuddy

‘Fearless’ graduate students are forging a new quantum frontier

Experimental setup with green laser light and a small diamond sample between metal contacts. — Researchers led by Nathalie de Leon have developed a magnetic sensing technique using quantum entanglement to detect previously hidden fluctuations in advanced materials such as superconductors. The researchers implant point defects in lab-grown diamonds to reveal an unprecedented look at magnetic field structure and correlated noise, a quantity that is beyond the reach of existing instruments. Photo by Sameer A. Khan/Fotobuddy

Diamond defects, now in pairs, reveal hidden fluctuations in the quantum world

Tweezers hold a quantum microchip. — Princeton Engineers have introduced a superconducting quantum computing chip with qubits that last more than 1 millisecond, three times longer than the best ever reported in a lab setting and nearly fifteen times longer than industry standard processors. Photos by Matthew Raspanti, Office of Communications

Princeton’s new quantum chip built for scale

A person (face not visible) wearing a white lab coat and blue disposable gloves holds a square lab plate in their left hand. Their right hand holds a pair of tweezers which they are using to pick up one of several small green plants on the plate. — Jonathan Conway, assistant professor of chemical and biological engineering, received an innovation grant for the project “Engineering symbiotic plant-microbe interactions for sustainable agriculture.” Photo by Sameer A. Khan/Fotobuddy

Since 2008, innovation funds have fostered research in AI fairness, sustainable agriculture, drug discovery and more

Professor writes on white board while talking with grad student.

Electrical and Computer Engineering

Improving human health, energy systems, computing and communications, and security