Rayssa Bruzaca de Andrade is the recipient of the KIF Prize 2026. She is a Team Leader in the Quantum Systems group at Hamamatsu Photonics (formerly NKT Photonics), where she works with advanced fiber laser hardware for quantum technologies and sensing applications. Originally from Brazil, Rayssa holds a PhD in physics from the University of São Paulo and later carried out postdoctoral research at DTU, where she worked on quantum-enhanced sensing using squeezed light.
Beyond her scientific work, Rayssa is deeply engaged in outreach, mentorship, and community-building within STEM and quantum technology. She is active in initiatives including High5Girls, QBrasil, and YATSI, working to make science more accessible and inclusive for young people and underrepresented groups across borders and generations. From 2020 to 2024, she also served on the board of Kvinder i Fysik (KIF), contributing to networking and visibility initiatives for women in physics.
In awarding the KIF Prize 2026, the committee highlights not only Rayssa’s scientific expertise and leadership within quantum technology, but also her remarkable dedication to outreach, representation, and building welcoming scientific communities.
First of all, congratulations on receiving the KIF Prize 2026! What was your reaction when you learned that you had been selected for the award?
I was surprised and extremely happy. It is an honour to receive this prize, and I am extremely grateful for it. It is a recognition of my work as a role model and physicist, and I am so proud of it.
You have built an international career spanning Brazil and Denmark, academia and industry, research and outreach. Looking back, what originally drew you to physics, and later specifically to quantum optics?
My choice for physics was not so conventional. From an early age, I had this feeling that if I wanted to change something related to my own reality, it would be through studying and learning. As a result, I started opening some doors, and very close and lovely people also helped me to open these doors. We are all the sum of the shared stories around us. Physics was not my intended option, but it was the option that would allow me to start at a public university without having to retake the entrance exams too many times. When I was accepted at the University of Brasilia, with the grades I got, I could have been eligible for the options I had wished for if I hadn’t chosen physics. I would, however, have had the opportunity to change to one of them after finishing the first semester. But when it was time to make the switch, I was already in love with everything I had learned so far. So, instead of changing to another degree, I decided to pursue, in parallel, a teaching degree in physics and a bachelor’s degree in physics.
It was not easy to go through these degrees. I had classes during the daytime for the bachelor’s program and for the teaching degree at night. But with a lot of effort, support, and persistence, I managed to finish both degrees. During this time, I also got involved in research projects in the physics department. I participated in both theoretical and experimental projects from a very early stage, which made the difference in how I approached my studies and my career choices.
When I was in the middle of the course, we started studying modern physics/introduction to quantum physics. It was love at first sight. I couldn’t make sense of a lot of things in the beginning, but the knowledge started to build up with time, and I wanted to understand more and more. Thus, I decided to study quantum physics during my Master’s.
I have done my Master’s and PhD at the University of São Paulo. There, I developed a source of entangled states of light operating above the threshold. The focus was the development of a quantum network, the possibility of storing data and transmitting information using quantum properties of light. Today, I am super proud of my young self, who, in spite of the many challenges faced, managed to build from the ground up a super complex experiment while developing part of the theory behind it.
The next step was quite natural: to pursue postdoctoral research outside Brazil. So I did an interview at the Technical University of Denmark to work at the QPIT group in quantum sensing. The area was different, but the tools and fundamental knowledge required were the same. I started working with squeezed light for quantum sensing applications in Denmark. It was a period full of learning, and my passion for quantum optics kept me moving this far.
After some years at DTU, it was time to make a choice. To move further in academic life, it would be necessary to move around more, and I wanted to settle down. So I decided to explore a position in the industry. For me, the main requirement would be to work in an environment that would provide me with challenges. I was leaving a field that I was really passionate about. So I would like to choose something that could become a new learning path.
Your work today focuses on advanced laser technologies for quantum technologies at Hamamatsu Photonics. For people outside the field, quantum physics can sometimes feel abstract or intimidating. What excites you most about the field, and how do you usually explain your work to young students or non-specialists?
Quantum physics challenges the way we see the world around us, and this is the beauty and hard part of the field. But we are, in our everyday lives, making use of quantum properties. It is conventional to talk about the first quantum revolution, for example, the transistors in the computer we use today, lasers, or medical exams like MRIs. All of those use quantum properties. Today, we are living through what is called the second quantum revolution, in which we are developing new technology based on quantum properties such as superposition, entanglement, and more. Examples of these technologies would be quantum computers, quantum key distributions, quantum communication channels, and quantum sensing.
When I explain these to young students or non-specialists, I try to connect this “new knowledge” to concepts they might encounter in their everyday lives. I also make it light and interactive, so we always have activities that will help them to create some intuition about the topic. The hardest part is to break down a complex concept into something easy to understand and tangible. But this is also the part that I enjoy the most.
For example, when explaining superposition, I ask them to make some thaumatropes. So they can be very creative, draw their own figures, and play with the end result. This helps them to create the necessary intuition.
We are living in the middle of a technological revolution. What we are seeing in development today will be used for the development of new medicines, new ways to secure our information and perform computation, all of it based on fundamentals laws of quantum physics. It is exciting to be part of this change.
Several people who nominated you highlighted your ability to make quantum physics accessible and inspiring for young girls through initiatives like High5Girls. Why is outreach such an important part of your work and identity as a physicist?
Knowledge is valuable; it is a resource that will stay with the person who acquires it. Technological revolutions, big discoveries in science, and so on, only happen because the people who are there have/had access to education. So it is extremely important to me that people, especially young people, have access to education.
My work with outreach is based on the principles of how to make complex concepts accessible for the young generations, as they will be the ones developing and using them in the future, and on how to make it in a way that drives their curiosity to look out for more. Also, on how to make them think critically about how the world is represented to us.
The lack of diversity in the STEM fields, especially in gender, is well known; there is a gender gap that increases the higher you get promoted in the field. So, to me, it is also important to focus on being a role model for young girls, so they can see that it is possible to be a woman and deal with physics, mathematics, engineering, and quantum physics if this is the choice they want to make. I don’t expect that all the girls want to do it, but I want all of them to know that they are capable of doing so if they want.
Like many of my women colleagues, we were the only ones or one of the few in our classrooms, in our work offices, in academia, or in industry. It is not an easy place to be, because beyond the hard science you are trying to do, you are also using a lot of energy to go against the status quo. It is an uneven competition for different reasons. I want to see the day (hopefully not 100 years from now) when the rooms in different fields are more diverse.
You have been involved in outreach and community-building in many different ways, from High5Girls in Denmark to QBrasil and Wise (former Womanium) internationally. What have these experiences taught you about representation and belonging in STEM?
All these groups have different principles in how they work, but there is a main concept that belongs to all of them: to make knowledge accessible.
How do we want people to compete at the same level if we don’t let them have access to the same tools others have, so they can play a fair game? When I was collaborating with the Womanium Foundation, we developed one of the biggest programs in quantum computing and technologies at the time. It was a super team effort that I had the opportunity to collaborate on. At that time, we had feedback from students that would say that it was the first time they would have access to that content because they couldn’t access other online resources due to their nationality. It was not easy to read that kind of message. It was also gratifying to see that, due to their participation in the program, some of the participants would get a job in quantum computing or related technologies. This was only possible because they got access to knowledge and information that was blocked from them up to that moment.
When you get in a room and you feel yourself heard and represented, the sense of belonging it generates is hard to describe. When we meet with the role models at High5Girls, we talk and share our stories, and you feel how much energy each one of us needed to spend to get where we are today. But you also feel that you are not alone any longer, that you belong to a place, and that it is fine that you are following your dreams.
In your nomination, you are described as a “bridge-builder” across countries, generations, and scientific communities. Do you see yourself that way as well? And if so, what kinds of bridges do you think are most needed in physics and quantum technology today?
I am grateful for these words. Thank you.
I am concerned about a quantum divide and the ethics of quantum technologies. Today, quantum technologies are considered part of national sovereignty for many countries and regions, meaning a lot of restrictions are imposed on the way people can collaborate. Quantum literacy is another important factor that needs to be leveraged; technical developments come with people being exposed/having access to the field.
As a consequence, countries with fewer possibilities of investing in these areas will be at a disadvantage. There are also restrictions on accessing quantum computers, for example, based on your country of residence.
These are bridges that need to be created and political decisions that need to be made in order to provide a fair use of these new disruptive technologies around the World.
You have experience from both academia and industry, and you now lead a team working on the development of laser systems for quantum technologies in industry. What has that transition been like for you, and what do you enjoy most about working in an industrial research environment?
Before joining Hamamatsu Photonics (formerly NKT Photonics), I had the privilege of working with quantum optics in an academic environment. This is an area that I am passionate about, but there was a moment when I needed to decide which path to take, and it was then that I chose to work in the industry.
Today, I am working in a fast-paced environment with the development of laser systems for the quantum industry. It is a work that has a direct impact on enabling quantum technologies, and Hamamatsu Photonics is at the forefront of producing ultra-stable laser sources. I very much enjoy the dynamic and the opportunity to work with so many skilled people from different areas.
You are also a mother while balancing leadership, outreach, and a demanding scientific career. Has becoming a parent changed the way you think about science, mentorship, or the future generation entering STEM fields?
Becoming a mother made me more aware of the challenges faced by parents, but especially by mothers. From academia to industry, different studies show the penalty women suffer in their careers, earnings, and working hours after becoming mothers. Most of these are related to the unequal amount of childcare that most of the women carry compared to men.
So it has not changed the way I think about science, but it has changed the way I question and position myself when facing challenges related to being a parent. As a role model, I tend to be honest about how I try to balance a career, motherhood and outreach activities. It is not easy, and when I am excelling in a certain area, it means I will not be the most present mother at that moment. I am learning to make peace with it. I also make it very clear that my partner is equally responsible for the care of my daughter as I am. It is important to show that there are different ways of parenting and that mothers don’t always need to be the first source of care.
Many young women and girls will read this interview and see you as a role model. What kind of role model do you hope to be, especially for people who may not immediately feel that they “fit” into physics or technology?
I hope they can see themselves represented in the field and know they belong in the space they want to be in.
Finally: when you imagine the future of physics and quantum technology, what gives you hope?
That we are more and more aware of the importance of a diverse environment. Diversity here and in all this text goes beyond gender. We need spaces and places with all kinds of people. In STEM, we have a gender gap, so we need to look at it more carefully. But overall, we need to welcome people with different cultures and backgrounds if we really want to create technology that will be for all.
Quantum technologies are not in the future; in fact, some of them are already used today. We are living in the middle of a technological revolution, and it gives me hope that we will use the opportunity and allow it to be accessible to all.
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