AMO Physicist

Greater Tokyo Area, Japan

Summary

A leading
neutral atom quantum computing company
is seeking
Quantum Scientists
(junior and senior levels) to join its
growing team
in Japan.

The team's mission is to transform next-generation neutral atom quantum systems into operational computing platforms. In Japan, the focus is on
advancing a state of the art digital neutral atom machine
located at a national laboratory in Tsukuba.

In this role, you will:

• Develop the machine into an operational platform offering state-of-the-art quantum computing and quantum error correction capabilities, emphasizing
  performance, stability, and programmability
  .
• Manage
  day-to-day system operations
  , optimizing for performance reliability, uptime, and cost efficiency.
• Drive
  continuous feature development and integration
  across the hardware and software stacks, aligned with customer needs, market opportunities, and the company's technology roadmap.
• Collaborate with customers on
  co-design projects
  to explore algorithms and applications at the forefront of the system's capabilities.

This position involves close collaboration with engineering and scientific teams in Japan and abroad. During onboarding, the successful candidate will spend time at the company's headquarters (USA) for training and team integration.

Responsibilities

System Development

• Integrate and test features across hardware and software stacks - from atomic control schemes and optical systems to software pipelines and operational workflows.
• Work closely with global teams to finalize and optimize the machine setup during the initial service launch phase.

Operations

• Participate in the operational management of the system, focusing on uptime, reliability, and cost optimization.
• Lead efforts in
  calibration design, telemetry, and automation
  , and troubleshoot performance issues or outages.

Customer Success Management

• Collaborate directly with stakeholders, including system owners, end users, and quantum software/service partners.
• Translate customer requirements into
  technical development goals and operational priorities
  .

Scientific and Application Development Support

• Partner with select customers to enable
  high-impact projects
  , sometimes running special machine configurations or developing new features to support them.
• Work closely with the Algorithms and Applications team to facilitate cutting-edge research and demonstrations.

Qualifications

• Ph.D.
  (senior positions) or
  Master's degree
  (junior positions) in
  experimental AMO physics or a related field
  , with hands-on experience building or operating neutral atom, trapped ion, or other quantum devices/platforms.
• Proven track record in
  experimental research
  , demonstrated through publications, talks, or equivalent achievements.
• Strong communication skills and enthusiasm for working with diverse customers and end users.
• Programming experience
  and a foundational understanding of software architectures.
• Experience in
  mentoring or training
  scientists or engineers.
• Willingness to provide
  on-call operational support
  for machine uptime.

We don't expect every single box to be ticked, so please don't be put off if you're missing one or two things.