Chair
Mrs Cheryl W BEng CEng FIET MInstP
I joined the IET (then IEE) as a student member during my industrial sponsored degree apprenticeship and I’m proud to have achieved Chartered Status and to be recognised as a Fellow. I moved from industry to government R&D roles after a few years ,where I’ve had a number of diverse research, UK policy and leadership roles across a broad range of areas. A strong focus has been on emerging technologies and their application. For the last decade I’ve been closely following the progress of quantum technologies including computing. I’m now leading work to adopt them for government applications and help to build the skills and ecosystem needed to sustain the growth needed.
I currently hold several advisory board roles for quantum, through the the UK NQTP and also through other emerging technology programmes. I mentor others in government policy and S&T roles to support development opportunity for all, particularly for under-represented groups.
As an IET Fellow I co-founded this TN to help raise awareness of the importance of engineering in the development of quantum computers, quantum technology applications and businesses and to drive the professional recognition and opportunities for engineers at all stages of career.
Vice-chair
Ms Harriet Van der Vliet
Harriet joined the executive committee in 2021 and became deputy chair in 2023. She chaired the IET Quantum Engineering Technical Workshop – Challenges of bridging Quantum and Classical Engineering at the inaugural Quantum Engineering Conference in October 2023.
Harriet is the product segment manager for quantum technologies at Oxford Instruments NanoScience, having previously been a quantum engineer in the NPI team for over 3 years.
Prior to this she received her PhD in quantum physics, specialising in current sensing noise thermometry and ultralow temperature engineering, from Royal Holloway, University of London’s Quantum Fluids and Solids group, The London Low Temperature Laboratory in 2017.
Harriet is a member of the Institute of Physics and sits on the steering committee of UK Quantum and the committee of the IOP quantum Business Innovation and Growth group. She has given many talks throughout the years on a technical level at scientific conferences and as an invited speaker/panellist and chair of various sessions and panels at quantum specific conferences.
Outside of work and quantum, Harriet is a musician, ballet dancer and lover of outdoor activities. Coming from training at a ballet school for 7 years before starting an MSci in Physics, Harriet is keen to encourage other people that you can be a physicist or engineer with a not so normal school education, and keep up your passions outside of physics and engineering!
Members
Dr John Martin Bagshaw
Dr Simon Bennett
Simon Bennett is Director for the UK Quantum Technology Hub Sensors and Timing, led by the University of Birmingham, where he helps to drives the translation of gravity sensors and ultra-precise clocks into technology and applications across a diverse number of sectors, including climate, communications, energy, transport and urban development.
He has been active in shaping the Hub’s strategic plan and has played a leading role in developing a technology road map for sensors based on quantum technology.
He is particularly interested in exploring the relationships between end users (the ultimate beneficiary), the equipment or service provider (“industry”), and the sources of disruptive innovation (academic researchers). His work in the QT Hub is aimed at bringing these actors into close partnership in order to accelerate the economic impact of new technology.
Dr Abby Casey
Abby is a Quantum Readiness delivery lead at the National Quantum Computing Centre and has joint responsibility for developing and delivering the NQCC’s Quantum Readiness initiative. Her team is responsible for quantum workforce and skills development, education and outreach and responsible and ethical quantum computing.
Abby has a multidisciplinary background in chemistry and physics and received her PhD from the Department of Physics at Imperial College London in the field of plastic electronics. Abby then worked as a Technologist at Infineum, leading New Product Development projects and academic collaborations to develop new additives for engine fuels and lubricants.
Abby is excited about using her membership of the of IET’s Quantum Engineering Technical Network to raise awareness of the criticality of quantum engineering skills in the development of quantum technologies.
Professor Derwen Hinds FIET
Derwen Hinds is a co-founder of this TN and an Independent Strategic Technical Advisor in Future and Emerging Technologies, having previously spent 17 years in the National Security Sector of Government for the last 10 years leading the impact analysis of future and emerging technologies for Security and Defence.
Derwen currently sits on several quantum standards groups, is a Visiting Fellow in Cyber Security, Loughborough University and Honorary Principal Research Fellow, ISST, Imperial College; having previously been a Visiting Professor at STEaPP, UCL.
Derwen has participated in 5 Government Chief Scientific Advisor’s Blackett Reviews, advised on behalf of National Security to several programmes including the UK National Quantum Technologies Programme (Strategic Advisory Board & Ops. Group) and represented National Security on many Public Sector and Academic committees and boards.
Prior to joining the Civil Service, Derwen spent 28 years in Industry including the computing capability for a large aerospace engineering group and the Nuclear side of the UK Electricity Generation industry as an intra/inter network designer and Technology Strategist.
Derwen originally qualified as a Mechanical and Production engineer, specialising in feedback Control Systems and Metallurgy before moving into commercial computer programming, engineering systems design and Production Control Systems design and implementation
Dr Bryn Hughes BSc, PhD, FBCS, FIET, FREng, IET
Bryn has been in government R&D for the majority of his career, working in many areas of defence and security. Early work focussed on biological oceanography, and the development of in situ, real time sensors. Subsequent studies included early research in the protection of the Critical National Infrastructure from electronic attack. Having held a number of secondments within MoD and other Government Departments at various levels of seniority, he has a broad experience across many areas of S&T. His most recent role has been as Technical Director, and then Head of Profession for Science and Engineering at Dstl, the Public Sector Research Establishment of MoD. Bryn has also worked with several of the Research Councils and was the MoD Board member on the EPSRC National Quantum Technologies Programme Board from its early days until his recent semi-retirement from government service.
He currently holds several advisory roles, particularly around the application of quantum sensing technologies to current problems sets, along with the development of SQEP required to fully exploit the national investment in quantum technologies.
Professor Sir Peter Knight FRS
Knight is Chair of the UK National Quantum Technology Programme Strategy Advisory Board and has been involved in the creation of the UK Quantum programme since its inception, including the creation of the UK Quantum Strategy and the commitment of £2.5bn over the next decade to the field.
He chairs the Quantum Metrology Institute at the National Physical Laboratory and is Senior Research Investigator at Imperial College where until 2010 he was Deputy Rector (Research). He was knighted in 2005 for his work in optical physics. Knight was the 2004 President of the Optical Society of America and 2011-2013 President of the Institute of Physics. He was until 2010 chair of the UK Defence Scientific Advisory Council and remains a UK Government science advisor. His research centres on quantum optics, nonclassical light and quantum technology.
He has won the Thomas Young Medal and the Glazebrook Medal of the Institute of Physics, the Ives Medal and the Walther Medal and Prize of the OSA, the Royal Medal of the Royal Society and the Faraday Prize of the IET.
Dr Richard Murray
Richard co-founded ORCA Computing in 2019. He is an accomplished business executive and technologist with a PhD in quantum atom-optics and over 15 years of experience managing scientific teams working on disruptive early-stage technologies such as quantum, AR/VR and other consumer and industrial applications of photonics.
Under his leadership, the company has grown to 45 people, expanded globally and developed a roadmap focused on building a fault-tolerant universal quantum computer.
Previously, Richard worked for the UK government alongside Sir Peter Knight creating the £270m UK quantum technologies programme. He was also pivotal in the early stages of the €1 billion EU quantum flagship programme.
Professor Dominic O'Brien MA PhD
Professor Dominic O’Brien is a Professor of Engineering Science at Oxford and leads the optical communications group. He is the Director of the UK National Hub in Quantum Computing and Simulation. This is one of the four Quantum Technology Hubs funded as part of the UK National Quantum Technologies programme, running from 2019-2024.
His research is in optical wireless communications, with a particular focus on system demonstration, with a number of world-firsts in this area. Recent demonstrations, together with industrial and academic partners, include Quantum Key Distribution using free-space links between handheld devices, between UAVs and ground stations, and Terabit/s wireless links within buildings. He also leads the recently funded EPSRC Hub in All-Spectrum Connectivity
Professor Douglas Paul FRSE FInstP FHEA SMIEEE CEng CPhys
Doug is a Royal Academy of Engineering Chair in Emerging Technologies and Professor of Semiconductor Devices in the James Watt School of Engineering at the University of Glasgow.
He was previously an EPSRC Established Quantum Technology Research Fellow providing leadership to the UK Quantum Technology Programme and Director of the James Watt Nanofabrication Centre at Glasgow. Before moving to Glasgow he was an EPSRC Advanced Research Fellow at the Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge. He was awarded the Institute of Physics President's Medal in 2014. He is on the programme committee for the IEEE International Electron Device Meeting and has led a number of international technical roadmaps including the Technology Roadmap of European Nanoelectronics and the EC Strategic Research Agenda on Sustainable ICT.
Doug's presently leads an EPSRC Programme grant on chip-scale quantum navigators, is a partner in 3 of the 4 UK Quantum Technology Hubs and been a partner in 10 Innovate UK quantum technology projects undertaking research on chip-scale atomic systems, Ge on Si single photon avalanche detectors and MEMS gravimeters.
Mr Mustafa Rampuri
Mustafa Rampuri is Business Director at Duality Quantum Photonics, a deep technology start-up focussing on designing and manufacturing nano-photonic chips for quantum technologies where he is responsible for developing and delivering the business and commercial strategy for the company.
He was formerly Director of Enterprise Services at the University of Bristol with responsibility for the Engine Shed, SETSquared Bristol Incubator, the Quantum Technologies Innovation Centre, was CEO of the Science Research Foundation Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of the University of Bristol and a Director at Science Creates Incubators. He has been core to the establishment of Bristol Digital Futures Institute, the National Composites Centre and has worked in quantum technologies for more than a decade, and throughout has been a champion for diversity and equitability in innovation.
Prior to joining the University of Bristol he worked in a number of technical and business facing roles in BAE SYSTEMS
Professor Tim Spiller MA PhD FInstP CPhys
Tim joined the Executive Committee of the IET Quantum Engineering TN when it started in 2020.
He is Professor of Quantum Information Technologies in the School of Physics, Engineering and Technology at the University of York, and Director of the EPSRC Quantum Communications Hub, which is part of the UK National Quantum Technologies Programme.
Tim’s career has featured R&D leadership in both academia and industry, including almost fifteen years heading Quantum Information Processing (QIP) Research at HP Labs Bristol. He has spent over 40 years researching quantum theory, hardware and technologies, publishing and patenting extensively across this spectrum.
IET staff support
Mrs Andrea Lund
Senior Community Manager
Contact communities, use reference QETN to: Communities-support@theiet.org