Who are you?

My name is Asma Chabane, I have just graduated in Nanotechnologies for ICTs. This degree brought me a lot in terms of knowledge, I received an advanced training in a wide range of fields: from the process fabrication of the chips, materials properties at the nanoscale, essential to identify what can help us achieve the application we have in mind for our device, micro and nano sensors, which are used for instance in biomedical or car industry. I also studied design techniques for digital and analog circuits, solid state physics and characterization techniques for nano systems. I could keep going like this for a while, but it wouldn’t do justice to this master, because it also brought me a lot of personal growth. The master's degree is a joint degree between schools in three different countries: France (Grenoble INP), where I am from, Italy (Politecnico di Torino) and Switzerland (EPFL). This means that I had to change countries every six months, which can be hard in the sense that when you start finding your place and balance, it is already time to move again. But having the opportunity to exercise your adaptation capabilities and resiliency in different great environments, being surrounded by passionate and impressive teachers and students from all over the world, all with different backgrounds, is priceless. It teaches you humility, widens your horizons and enriches you in so many ways. This master is definitely one of the greatest lessons I had in life.

Have you always been interested in science?

One of the first birthday gifts I can remember asking for was a PlayStation. A whole world, full of possibilities, appeared on the screen, whose only limit was my imagination. As a child, this was really fascinating and, picking my curiosity, pushed me to look into how this was happening. At that time, I was also interested in mathematics which had been pushed further by my first teacher in secondary school, Mr. Pietri. He was always challenging me by giving me harder problems instead of letting me wait and lose interest, as I used to finish earlier than my classmates. So yes, I have always been interested in science, having this little spark inside me, which my parents and teachers have contributed to grow, making science inextricably tied with my life today.

How did you come to study physics at university? What do you like about the field?

Understanding how things work was a matter of interest, and for me this was also applicable to the human body. But after high school, I had to make a choice, and my instincts were pushing me to mathematics, because I really wanted to develop scientific rigor, necessary if you want to make a proper proof. I believe that digging into this field really teaches you how to think, in a logical and coherent manner. At the same time, I was really attracted by physics because it gives you a stronger link with the real world, allowing you to describe what is happening around you and contribute to the development of devices for daily-life application. The idea of taking part in the manufacturing of a device that is going to be used by people to solve one of their every-day problems was really appealing to me.

What is the topic of your master’s project?

My master thesis consisted in the characterization and modeling of electronic devices at cryogenic temperature and I carried it out at IBM Research Zurich. One of the main applications of this project is quantum computing : to take advantage of the higher computational power provided by quantum, it is necessary to increase the number of qubits. They are controlled by room temperature instruments, which communicate to the qubits, kept in a fridge at mK, through long and noisy co-axial cables. This approach is not scalable, and we now consider integrating the control electronics inside the cryostation. To do so, it is essential to correctly predict the behavior of the devices used in the cryogenic circuits, essentially in terms of power efficiency and dissipation. As temperature goes down, it is exponentially difficult to cool down the cryostation, while heat is detrimental for the correct operation of qubits. When the devices are operating and current flows, heat is generated. This is called self-heating and is highly dependent on the device material and architecture. To put it in a nutshell, my work aimed to improve the design of the circuits used to control, read-out and bias the qubits to develop a cryogenic controller with a focus on self-heating effects.

Do women face specific challenges in the sciences?

I believe that women must deal with difficulties specifically related to their gender, and this for different reasons. First, women tend to be raised and influenced by social expectations in a way that they can feel pressured to be perfect and make no waves. This may be lifesaving, a simple look at Darwin Awards statistics, which award men 90% of the time can attest to it, but when it comes to science, in particular research, being afraid of failure is a real hurdle. Failing experiments or picking the wrong hypothesis is inherent to scientific method, and what is important is not to always be successful, but to be tenacious enough to keep trying, even when you know there is a high probability it will fail again.

Another point is the role women are expected to have as mother or simply as member of the household. Family-work balance becomes an additional challenge, as women are still handling most of the tasks at home. The decision to dedicate less time to these tasks to make progress in your career is not appreciated and accepted the same way if it comes from women. Scientific research is not easy, and adding mental load is not helping.

Any advice for young girls interested in the field?

Bravery is better than perfection. Don’t be afraid to fail because the best way to not make mistakes is to do nothing.

Interact with the other girls in your field. You may not notice it at the beginning, but being surrounded mostly by men may be mentally demanding in the long run. As you face different challenges, it will be helpful to be able to talk with someone who may have experienced the same struggles and has learned how to cope. However, men can often share a different approach, so make sure to talk to both genders.

Find a model. I was not convinced at all about this advice, but now that I have found my model, I can assure you that it really helps to remind you what you can accomplish. You just need to find the right one. Getting involved in pushing diversity further can help you not only to find a role model, but also to give you strength and tenacity because you know your actions may help younger girls to become who they really want to be.