Achieving fault tolerance on quantum devices requires not just powerful error correcting codes, but practical strategies for deploying them on imperfect hardware and in complex architectures. This talk focuses on surface code quantum error correction (QEC) techniques that account for and exploit heterogeneity, whether that arises from nonuniform noise and fabrication defects or from architectural structure such as hierarchies in QRAM. We begin by studying how physical qubit imperfections and defect distributions affect logical performance, introducing frameworks for quantifying acceptable levels of defectiveness, adapting syndrome circuits, and selecting modular chiplet​ layouts to minimize logical failure and qubit overhead. Next, we present architectural techniques that leverage heterogeneous error protection, such as assigning variable code distances to different logical roles to balance fidelity against resource cost. Through analytical and simulation-based analysis, reductions in physical qubit overhead and improvements in QRAM fidelity with heterogeneous surface code deployments will be shown. By bridging device-level variation with system level design, the presented techniques offer a path toward more efficient and resilient fault tolerant quantum computing in the presence of resource scarcity and hardware heterogeneity.

This event starts at 3:30pm with refreshments, followed at 3:45pm by a short presentation by Tianyi Hao (graduate student, Swamit Tannu group) titled "Correlation Surfaces: An Overlooked Piece in Fault-Tolerant Quantum Computing". The invited presentation starts at 4pm.