dbontr Fellowship profile Update (#2853)

Author: dbontr

_fellows/2026/dbontr.md

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+---
+layout: fellow
+pagetype: fellow
+shortname: dbontr
+permalink: /fellows/dbontr.html
+fellow-name: Devon Bontrager
+title: Devon Bontrager - IRIS-HEP Fellow
+active: True
+dates:
+  - start: 2025-05-19
+    end: 2025-08-25
+  - start: 2026-06-08
+    end: 2026-08-28
+photo: /assets/images/team/fellows-2025/Devon-Bontrager.jpg
+institution: University of Kansas
+e-mail: devonlbontrager@ku.edu
+
+projects:
+  - project_title: Cooperative Track Building with Heuristic and Quantum Acceleration
+    project_goal: >
+      This project aims to explore novel ways to improve track reconstruction performance for the HL-LHC through three innovations: (1) cooperative track building where parallel hypotheses share quality metrics and prune weaker candidates; (2) adaptation of underexplored heuristic methods including Ant Colony Optimization, Particle Swarm Optimization, Simulated Annealing, Genetic Algorithms, best-first A*/Hungarian matching; and (3) a quantum-parallel proof of concept using QUBO-based seed selection on quantum devices. The unified Python framework developed during the project will benchmark trade-offs in speed, accuracy, and resource consumption, and highlight the potential of hybrid classical–quantum pipelines for real-time, high-accuracy tracking in high-pileup environments.
+    mentors:
+      - Dr. Liv Vage (Princeton)
+    proposal: /assets/pdf/fellows-2025/USA019-proposal-Devon-Bontrager.pdf
+  - project_title: Quantum Simulation Modules for HEP Event Generation
+    project_goal: >
+      Recent studies indicate that quantum simulators, both analog and digital, can probe non-perturbative phenomena and real-time dynamics that are difficult to access with classical lattice techniques, with clear relevance for high-energy physics. This project explores how such advances can be translated into practical components for HEP event generation and detector simulation workflows. The work will focus on identifying a limited, demonstrable use case motivated by LHC physics, developing appropriate data representations, and designing robust software interfaces that allow targeted quantum simulation modules to be integrated into existing HEP generators.
+    mentors:
+      - Dr. Brij Kishor Jashal (Oxford)
+    proposal: /assets/pdf/fellows-2026/USA005-proposal-Devon-Bontrager.pdf
+presentations:
+  - title:
+    date:
+    url:
+    meeting:
+    meetingurl:
+    recordingurl:
+    focus-area:
+current_status: >
+    A placeholder for status updates
+github-username: dbontr
+linkedin-profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/devon-bontrager/
+---