Quantum Measurement Technician

University of British Columbia - Staff; Vancouver; On-site; CAD 30,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

The University of British Columbia is searching for a Quantum Measurement Technician to join the Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute. This role involves the operation and maintenance of advanced measurement systems crucial for quantum research. Applicants should have a technical college degree and relevant experience in microwave electronics, alongside a commitment to teamwork and safety practices within a diverse environment.

Qualifications

• Minimum 2 years related experience or equivalent education.
• Willingness to respect diverse perspectives.
• Experience in a research setting is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Responsible for operation and maintenance of qubit control electronics.
• Collaborate with researchers and report on results.
• Ensure all equipment operates within specifications.

Skills

Microwave test techniques

Teamwork

Fault diagnosis

Education

Graduation from a technical college or institute

Tools

CAD-related software

Job description

Staff - Non Union

Job Category Non Union Technicians and Research Assistants Job ProfileNon Union Salaried - Engineering Technician 2 Job Title Quantum Measurement Technician Department Technical Operations | Quantum Matter Institute | Faculty of Science Compensation Range $4,322.03 - $5,170.09 CAD Monthly Posting End Date July 3, 2025

Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the Posting End Date.

Job End Date

Jul 6, 2026

At UBC, we believe that attracting and sustaining a diverse workforce is key to the successful pursuit of excellence in research, innovation, and learning for all faculty, staff and students. Our commitment to employment equity helps achieve inclusion and fairness, brings rich diversity to UBC as a workplace, and creates the necessary conditions for a rewarding career.

Job Summary

The Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute at UBC (Blusson QMI) is a world-leading venture advancing research into solid state systems and phenomena that explicitly involve quantum mechanics. Among its core areas of expertise are the development of materials hosting novel quantum electronic states and measurement of nanoscale electronic and photonic structures built from these materials, whose device characteristics open remarkable new paradigms of operation.

Blusson QMI has invested heavily in acquiring and building state-of-the-art cryogenic systems, electronic test and measurement instrumentation, and both microwave and optical spectroscopy equipment. These are being used to develop novel devices for manipulating information encoded quantum mechanically.

The Quantum Measurement Technician is responsible for the operation and maintenance of various custom-integrated measurement tools, with the aim of delivering state-of-the-art cryogenic qubit measurement capabilities to research groups at Blusson QMI.

To this end, the post holder, who should already have experience in microwave electronics for qubit control, will be responsible for the assembly, maintenance, and operation of laboratory equipment. The individual is expected to work independently, with a proactive and creative spirit and in close collaboration with colleagues, in order to deliver what is required of the role.

The post holder also has a duty to ensure that all tasks conducted within Blusson QMI labs are performed in a safe manner that conforms to current legislation and workplace protocols.

Project details:

The Principal Investigator’s research group uses a variety of cryogenic systems that include close-cycle dilution refrigerators, 300 mK probe and 1.2 K probe cryostats. These house custom-fabricated quantum devices require electrical and optical connectivity ranging from DC, through microwave frequencies. These are connected to a variety of electrical measurement instruments external to the cryostats (gigasample arbitrary waveform generators, digitizers microwave and optical sources, etc.). The general objective of the research projects is to develop new devices capable of generating, manipulating, and measuring information stored in some combination of electronic spin and/or photonic degrees of freedom.

Organizational Status
The Quantum Measurement Technician reports to the Blusson QMI Facilities Director and Joe Salfi in a mix of projects with external collaborators and collaborators within Blusson QMI, including Lukas Chrostowski and Jeff Young. The post holder will work independently and pro-actively, and will be often required to collaborate closely with researchers.

Work Performed

The Quantum Measurement Technician will be responsible for building, maintaining, and operating qubit control electronics including Keysight modular qubit control electronics and QICK modular qubit control electronics with the aim of delivering a combination of assembled hardware and written software (Python) that enables high fidelity qubit control and readout, as well as the design and assembly of printed circuit boards, to achieve the same goal. The technician will maintain all the equipment and be fluent in how each component functions and integrates with the others. They will also contribute to documentation of operation procedures and reports in relation to the equipment.

The following items reflect the most important tasks associated with the post. The list is not complete and may change as the role evolves with time. The technician:

- Follows the direction of the Principal Investigator in the building, set-up, and operation of test equipment.

- Works on a number of different projects, that includes internal and ex

ternal stakeholders.

- Monitors the performance of equipment to ensure that this equipment remains accurate and perform to specifications.

- Offers time, skills, and expertise to other Blusson QMI labs and projects, as instructed by the Principal Investigator, and performs other tasks relevant to the job tasks, as required.

- Interacts with researchers and research partners, including discussing new projects, reporting on results, and coordinating work.

Consequence of Error/Judgement
Errors in analyses could lead to incorrect interpretation of research results and prevent the attainment of research goals. Such errors would result in the loss of time and resources on behalf of the researchers. Improper operation of laboratory facilities and instrumentation could result in downtime that delays research and expensive damage to equipment.

Supervision Received
Works under the general direction of the Principal Investigator.

Supervision Given
None

Minimum Qualifications
Graduation from a technical college or institute and a minimum two years of related experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

- Willingness to respect diverse perspectives, including perspectives in conflict with one’s own

- Demonstrates a commitment to enhancing one’s own awareness, knowledge, and skills related to equity, diversity, and inclusion

Preferred Qualifications

- Proven working knowledge of microwave test techniques.

- Be familiar with the underlying principles of microwave networks, and cryogenic systems.

-Computer skills, including CAD-related software

- Experience in a research and/or research & development setting

- Proven working knowledge and hands-on experience in prototyping and machining of test apparatus

- Proven awareness of safe work practices

- Lab instrumentation/equipment fault finding and fault diagnosis skills

- Demonstrated team work qualities