Jianqiang Li-TCS (Quantum)

I am Jianqiang Li, a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Rice University under Nai-Hui Chia, Anastasios Kyrillidis, and Tirthak Patel, working on quantum optimization algorithms and their applications. Previously, I obtained my Ph.D. at the theoretical computer science group of Pennsylvania State University under the supervision of Sean Hallgren, focusing on quantum algorithms. Before that, I worked with Sevag Gharibian at Virginia Commonwealth University on approximation algorithms for quantum mechanical problems. I did my master's at the Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, and my undergraduate at Yunnan University, China.

My research focuses on identifying problems for which quantum algorithms can achieve superpolynomial speedups. I am currently leading the project A New Quantum Linear System Algorithm and Its Applications.

Prospective PhD Students:

I am an incoming Assistant Professor (2026 Fall) in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Texas at Dallas, and I am currently recruiting two PhD students to join my group working on quantum algorithms and their applications. If you are interested in working with me, please send me an email with your research interest and CV.

CV ( Mar, 2026)

The authors of the following papers are listed in alphabetical order unless mentioned explicitly otherwise.

Selected publications and preprints:

A New Quantum Linear System Algorithm Beyond the Condition Number and Its Application to Solving Multivariate Polynomial Systems

Under Submission, https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.05588 partial result presented at QuantIPS.

Presented at Rice Quantum Initiative https://quantum.rice.edu/seminars.

Accepted as a talk at the Conference on Quantum Information Processing (QIP) 2026, Jan 30, 2026, Riga (Remote).

Being selected as one of the seven teams (7/133) in the finalist in the XPRIZE Quantum Applications competition Dec 9,2025. Team name QuantumForGraphproblem

RiceNews

Invited talk at UT Austin, Host (Scott Aaronson), Feb 2, 2026.

Invited talk at The Quantum Student Success Summit (QS3) at Rice University Mar 23-24, 2026.

2. Exponential Quantum Advantage for Pathfinding in Regular Sunflower Graphs.

Joint work with Yu Tong, 2024. https://arxiv.org/pdf/2407.14398

3. Multidimensional Electrical Networks and their Application to Exponential Speedups for Graph Problems. Quantum 9, 1733 (2025).

Joint work with Sebastian Zur, 2023. https://arxiv.org/abs/2311.07372.

4. Exponential speedup of quantum algorithms for the pathfinding problem. https://arxiv.org/abs/2307.12492. Quantum Inf Process 24, 67 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11128-025-04689-7

5. A quantum algorithm for the pathfinding problem via the quantum electrical flow. Joint work with Sean Hallgren, under preparation 2025.

6. Limitations of the Macaulay matrix approach for using the HHL algorithm to solve multivariate polynomial systems. Quantum, 7:1069, 2023. Joint work with Jintai Ding, Vlad Gheorghiu, András Gilyén, Sean Hallgren https://arxiv.org/abs/2111.00405

QIP 2021 talk and Slides (Jianqiang Li)

7. Quantum state representation based on combinatorial Laplacian matrix of star-relevant graph. Quantum Information Processing,14(12), 4 691-4713. Joint work with Xiubo Chen, Yixian Yang (By contribution) https://arxiv.org/abs/1507.05491.

Contact

Email: jl567[at]rice.edu

Office: Duncan Hall 3010, 6100 Main St, MS-132, Houston, TX