Nobert Linke

Director QLab

Norbert M. Linke is the Director of QLab, the National Quantum Laboratory at the University of Maryland (UMD) as well as an Associate Professor of Physics and Fellow of the Joint Quantum Institute. His research focuses on quantum applications of trapped ions and the realization of quantum algorithms. Born in Munich, Germany, he graduated from the University of Ulm, and received his doctorate at the University of Oxford, UK, working on micro-fabricated ion-traps and microwave-addressing of ions. He spent four years as a post-doc and research scientist in the group of Chris Monroe where he led a project that turned a physics experiment into a programmable quantum computer. He became an assistant professor at UMD in 2019. From 2022 he spent three years at the Duke Quantum Center at Duke University in Durham, NC, and in September 2025 he returned to UMD to become the Director of QLab, a user facility providing access to quantum computers for researchers, educators and start-ups.