Discrete-variable quantum key distribution with homodyne detection

Most quantum key distribution (QKD) protocols can be classified as either a discrete-variable (DV) protocol or continuous-variable (CV) protocol, based on how classical information is being encoded. We propose a protocol that combines the best of both worlds – the simplicity of quantum state preparation in DV-QKD together with the cost-effective and high-bandwidth of homodyne detectors used in CV-QKD. Our proposed protocol has two highly practical features: (1) it does not require the honest parties to share the same reference phase (as required in CV-QKD) and (2) the selection of decoding basis can be performed after measurement. We also prove the security of the proposed protocol in the asymptotic limit under the assumption of collective attacks. Our simulation suggests that the protocol is suitable for secure and high-speed practical key distribution over metropolitan distances.

Deep reinforcement learning for universal quantum state preparation via dynamic pulse control

Accurate and efficient preparation of quantum state is a core issue in building a quantum computer. In this paper, we investigate how to prepare a certain single- or two-qubit target state from arbitrary initial states in semiconductor double quantum dots with only a few discrete control pulses by leveraging the deep reinforcement learning. Our method is based on the training of the network over numerous preparing tasks. The results show that once the network is well trained, it works for any initial states in the continuous Hilbert space. Thus repeated training for new preparation tasks is avoided. Our scheme outperforms the traditional optimization approaches based on gradient with both the higher efficiency and the preparation quality in discrete control space. Moreover, we find that the control trajectories designed by our scheme are robust against stochastic fluctuations within certain thresholds, such as the charge and nuclear noises.

A divide-and-conquer algorithm for quantum state preparation

Advantages in several fields of research and industry are expected with the rise of quantum computers. However, the computational cost to load classical data in quantum computers can impose restrictions on possible quantum speedups. Known algorithms to create arbitrary quantum states require quantum circuits with depth O(N) to load an N-dimensional vector. Here, we show that it is possible to load an N-dimensional vector with exponential time advantage using a quantum circuit with polylogarithmic depth and entangled information in ancillary qubits. Results show that we can efficiently load data in quantum devices using a divide-and-conquer strategy to exchange computational time for space. We demonstrate a proof of concept on a real quantum device and present two applications for quantum machine learning. We expect that this new loading strategy allows the quantum speedup of tasks that require to load a significant volume of information to quantum devices.

Estimating expectation values using approximate quantum states

We introduce an approximate description of an N-qubit state, which contains sufficient information to estimate the expectation value of any observable to a precision that is upper bounded by the ratio of a suitably-defined seminorm of the observable to the square root of the number of the system's identical preparations M, with no explicit dependence on N. We describe an operational procedure for constructing the approximate description of the state that requires, besides the quantum state preparation, only single-qubit rotations followed by single-qubit measurements. We show that following this procedure, the cardinality of the resulting description of the state grows as 3MN. We test the proposed method on Rigetti's quantum processor unit with 12, 16 and 25 qubits for random states and random observables, and find an excellent agreement with the theory, despite experimental errors.