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The US Scientific Delegate for Quantum Technologies, Prineha Narang, along with Martina Barnas, Science Director - Quantum at the Office of Naval Research (ONR) Global, and Lisa Spink with Nina Rabe from the US Embassy in Prague, visited the University of West Bohemia.

The delegation to NTC was welcomed by the rector of the University of West Bohemia, Miroslav Lávička, together with NTC Director Petr Kavalíř. The Faculty of Applied Sciences was introduced by Pavel Baroch, and the vision of UWB regarding education in the field of quantum technologies was presented by Miroslav Holeček. This was followed by a tour of the SARPES laboratory led by Ján Minár and a discussion with young foreign researchers from the Quantum Materials team. "Currently, we have a doctoral student from Rice University in Houston on a two-month internship with us. We collaborate with American colleagues from various institutions on both experimental and theoretical bases. Intensifying scientific cooperation with the USA in the field of joint research projects and internships would be mutually beneficial. During the debate, we found several common topics and synergies in which we could complement each other. In terms of projects, we could potentially also utilize support from ONR. I believe that this visit opens doors to new and undoubtedly interesting cooperation," says Ján Minár, head of the Quantum Materials Research team and Deputy Director of NTC for Research.

The special visit also greatly impressed the project aimed at enhancing students' motivation for studying technical fields, Infrared Cameras for Schools, especially the Girls' Labs project, which specifically focuses on grammar/high school female students and utilizes IR cameras specially developed for schools.

Prineha Narang is a Professor in Physical Sciences and Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with an interdisciplinary research group spanning areas of physics, chemistry, and engineering. Her group focuses on theoretical and computational quantum materials, non-equilibrium dynamics, and quantum information science. Before moving to UCLA, she worked in the field of computational materials at Harvard University. Her work has been recognized with several awards, including the Guggenheim Fellowship in Physics in 2023, the Maria Goeppert Mayer Award from the American Physical Society, and the ONR Young Investigator Award in 2023. Among other things, she is the founder and Chief Technology Officer of Aliro, where she played a leading role in transitioning from research and development in quantum information to transforming these technologies into commercially available and practically usable products. Specifically, she focused on creating quantum networks that can grow and adapt to users' needs. Besides science, she is an avid Ironman-triathlon racer and marathon runner.

"Prineha Narang came to the Czech Republic to visit top-notch facilities specializing in quantum technologies. After visiting Pilsen, she also headed to Prague, Brno, Olomouc, and Ostrava," says Petr Kavalíř, Director of NTC and delegate for quantum technologies for the Czech Republic, who accompanies her during her visit.