From May 5th to 7th our group member Juan Manuel Sánchez Melián represented our group at the 13th International BSC Severo Ochoa Doctoral Symposium, where he presented his latest achievements and progress. This event plays a key role in the BSC environment, providing PhD students and young researchers with the opportunity to present their work, gain experience, and receive feedback. Around 50 presenters from a variety of backgrounds, including computer science, physics and biotechnology, took part in this year’s event.
Juan Manuel presented a poster during the first session on the 5th of May, sharing his investigation into Variational Quantum Algorithms applied to the propagation of electromagnetic waves through vacuum and cold plasma. The constructed solver correctly reproduced classical precision for the vacuum propagation case and was extended to a cold-plasma-filled model, which disturbs the previously calculated mode of propagation. This work forms a part of the group’s efforts to apply Quantum Computation and Quantum Algorithms to fusion plasma research.
Juan Manuel was also part of the Organizing Committee of the Doctoral Symposium, ensuring the event ran smoothly and presenters had the perfect environment in which to present their work. This work is very important because the Doctoral Symposium is a self-organized event that relies on the voluntary efforts of BSC’s researchers. Through balancing his roles as an event organizer and a presenter, Juan Manuel has gained a deeper appreciation for the collaborative spirit of the BSC. It was a unique opportunity to learn, grow, and contribute to an environment that nurtures the next generation of scientific breakthroughs.
This work has been funded by the Ministry for Digital Transformation and the Civil Service of the Spanish Government through the QUANTUM ENIA project call – Quantum Spain project, and by the European Union through the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan –NextGenerationEU within the framework of the Digital Spain 2026 Agenda.