Research
Tarek Haddad
Doctoral Researcher, Photonic Interconnects
he/him · at Ruqi since 2023
“A modular quantum computer is mostly a conversation between rooms. My job is to make sure the message survives the hallway.”
Tarek is completing his doctorate in electrical engineering while working with Ruqi's hardware group on cryogenic photonic links. He studies how optical interconnects behave at millikelvin temperatures and how to package them without turning every link into a new source of heat.
He grew up in Beirut, the son of a radio repairman, and learned electronics by tracing faults in broken amplifiers. He came to photonics through amateur astronomy and a stubborn interest in how information moves across distances.
His work is part of the lab's modular architecture program: instead of one impossibly large processor, many smaller quantum modules connected by a network. He is responsible for the optical testbed and for documenting it well enough that a visiting student can run it alone.
Working on
Cryogenic photonics · Modular architectures · Packaging
Off the clock
Plays oud, grinds his own telescope mirrors, and is the person everyone calls when a piece of lab equipment makes a new sound.
Ask me about
photonic packaging, cryostats, testbeds, oud music.
Questions in the drawer
- What is the thermal cost of a chip-to-chip photonic link at 4 kelvin?
- Can standard fiber components be qualified for cryogenic use without a custom fab?
- How do we test a modular system when only some modules are coherent at once?
Selected work
2025
2026
2024
Open to collaborations
Work with Tarek
Good questions make better neighbours.
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