Britton Plourde studies quantum coherence and vortex dynamics in microfabricated superconducting devices. These devices have features as small as 100 nm, and the measurements take place at temperatures near absolute zero. Quantum coherent superconducting devices are one of the leading candidates for the building blocks, or "qubits", of a quantum computer. Such a computer would be capable of solving many problems which are intractable on even the most powerful classical computer. Plourde's research focuses on fabricating these superconducting qubits, optimizing the techniques for reading out their quantum state, minimizing the decoherence of the qubits, and developing techniques for generating entanglement. Vortices in superconductors exhibit a rich variety of phenomena as they interact with currents, defects, and each other. With nanoscale patterning and etching, it is possible to control the location and motion of these vortices. Plourde's group employs such nanofabricated structures to investigate novel vortex dynamics, such as vortex ratchets, which can produce a directed motion of vortices in response to an oscillatory driving force. Other ongoing projects probe the low-temperature response of vortices at microwave frequencies and explore the possibility of quantum coherent vortex dynamics.