Todd Brun | University of Southern California (original) (raw)

Papers by Todd Brun

Quantum Error Correction, 2009

We consider a composite system consisting of coupled particles, and investigate decoherence due t... more We consider a composite system consisting of coupled particles, and investigate decoherence due to coupling of the center-of-mass degree of freedom with the internal degrees of freedom. For a simple model of two bound particles, we show that in general such a decoherence effect exists, and leads to suppression of interference between different paths of the center-of-mass. For the special case of two harmonically-bound particles moving in an external potential in one dimension, we show that the coupling between the center-of-mass and internal degrees of freedom can be approximated as parametric driving, and that nontrivial coupling depends on the second derivative of the external potential. We find a partial solution to this parametric driving problem. For a simple interference experiment, consisting of two wave packets scattering off of a square well, we perform numerical simulations and show a close connection between suppression of interference and entanglement between the center-...

The scheme of entanglement-assisted quantum error-correcting (EAQEC) codes assumes that the ebits... more The scheme of entanglement-assisted quantum error-correcting (EAQEC) codes assumes that the ebits of the receiver are error-free. In practical situations, errors on these ebits are unavoidable, which diminishes the error-correcting ability of these codes. We consider two different versions of this problem. We first show that any (nondegenerate) standard stabilizer code can be transformed into an EAQEC code that can correct errors on the qubits of both sender and receiver. These EAQEC codes are equivalent to standard stabilizer codes, and hence the decoding techniques of standard stabilizer codes can be applied. Several EAQEC codes of this type are found to be optimal. In a second scheme, the receiver uses a standard stabilizer code to protect the ebits, which we call a "combination code." The performances of different quantum codes are compared in terms of the channel fidelity over the depolarizing channel. We give a formula for the channel fidelity over the depolarizing c...

It has recently been shown that there are efficient algorithms for quantum computers to solve cer... more It has recently been shown that there are efficient algorithms for quantum computers to solve certain problems, such as prime factorization, which are intractable to date on classical computers. The chances for practical implementation, however, are limited by decoherence, in which the effect of an external environment causes random errors in the quantum calculation. To combat this problem, quantum error correction schemes have been proposed, in which a single quantum bit (qubit) is "encoded" as a state of some larger number of qubits, chosen to resist particular types of errors. Most such schemes are vulnerable, however, to errors in the encoding and decoding itself. We examine two such schemes, in which a single qubit is encoded in a state of n qubits while subject to dephasing or to arbitrary isotropic noise. Using both analytical and numerical calculations, we argue that error correction remains beneficial in the presence of weak noise, and that there is an optimal tim...

Quantum walks can be defined in two quite distinct ways: discrete-time and continuous-time quantu... more Quantum walks can be defined in two quite distinct ways: discrete-time and continuous-time quantum walks (DTQWs and CTQWs). For classical random walks, there is a natural sense in which continuous-time walks are a limit of discrete-time walks. Quantum mechanically, in the discrete-time case, an additional "coin space" must be appended for the walk to have nontrivial time evolution. Continuous-time quantum walks, however, have no such constraints. This means that there is no completely straightforward way to treat a CTQW as a limit of DTQW, as can be done in the classical case. Various approaches to this problem have been taken in the past. We give a construction for walks on d-regular, d-colorable graphs when the coin flip operator is Hermitian: from a standard DTQW we construct a family of discrete-time walks with a well-defined continuous-time limit on a related graph. One can think of this limit as a coined continuous-time walk. We show that these CTQWs share some prope...

We develop a theory of entanglement distillation that exploits a convolutional coding structure. ... more We develop a theory of entanglement distillation that exploits a convolutional coding structure. We provide a method for converting an arbitrary classical binary or quaternary convolutional code into a convolutional entanglement distillation protocol. The imported classical convolutional code does not have to be dual-containing or self-orthogonal. The yield and error-correcting properties of such a protocol depend respectively on the rate and error-correcting properties of the imported classical convolutional code. A convolutional entanglement distillation protocol has several other benefits. Two parties sharing noisy ebits can distill noiseless ebits ``online'' as they acquire more noisy ebits. Distillation yield is high and decoding complexity is simple for a convolutional entanglement distillation protocol. Our theory of convolutional entanglement distillation reduces the problem of finding a good convolutional entanglement distillation protocol to the well-established pr...

It is well known that any projective measurement can be decomposed into a sequence of weak measur... more It is well known that any projective measurement can be decomposed into a sequence of weak measurements, which cause only small changes to the state. Similar constructions for generalized measurements, however, have relied on the use of an ancilla system. We show that any generalized measurement can be decomposed into a sequence of weak measurements without the use of an ancilla, and give an explicit construction for these weak measurements. The measurement procedure has the structure of a random walk along a curve in state space, with the measurement ending when one of the end points is reached. This shows that any measurement can be generated by weak measurements, and hence that weak measurements are universal. This may have important applications to the theory of entanglement.

Much of the theory of entanglement concerns the transformations that are possible to a state unde... more Much of the theory of entanglement concerns the transformations that are possible to a state under local operations with classical communication (LOCC); however, this set of operations is complicated and difficult to describe mathematically. An idea which has proven very useful is that of the entanglement monotone: a function of the state which is invariant under local unitary transformations and always decreases (or increases) on average after any local operation. In this paper we look on LOCC as the set of operations generated by infinitesimal local operations, operations which can be performed locally and which leave the state little changed. We show that a necessary and sufficient condition for a function of the state to be an entanglement monotone under local operations that do not involve information loss is that the function be a monotone under infinitesimal local operations. We then derive necessary and sufficient differential conditions for a function of the state to be an ...

Entanglement-assisted quantum error-correcting codes (EAQECCs) make use of pre-existing entanglem... more Entanglement-assisted quantum error-correcting codes (EAQECCs) make use of pre-existing entanglement between the sender and receiver to boost the rate of transmission. It is possible to construct an EAQECC from any classical linear code, unlike standard QECCs which can only be constructed from dual-containing codes. Operator quantum error-correcting codes (OQECCs) allow certain errors to be corrected (or prevented) passively, reducing the complexity of the correction procedure. We combine these two extensions of standard quantum error correction into a unified entanglement-assisted quantum error correction formalism. This new scheme, which we call entanglement-assisted operator quantum error correction (EAOQEC), is the most general and powerful quantum error-correcting technique known, retaining the advantages of both entanglement-assistance and passive correction. We present the formalism, show the considerable freedom in constructing EAOQECCs from classical codes, and demonstrate ...

We show how to protect a stream of quantum information from decoherence induced by a noisy quantu... more We show how to protect a stream of quantum information from decoherence induced by a noisy quantum communication channel. We exploit preshared entanglement and a convolutional coding structure to develop a theory of entanglement-assisted quantum convolutional coding. Our construction produces a Calderbank-Shor-Steane (CSS) entanglement-assisted quantum convolutional code from two arbitrary classical binary convolutional codes. The rate and error-correcting properties of the classical convolutional codes directly determine the corresponding properties of the resulting entanglement-assisted quantum convolutional code. We explain how to encode our CSS entanglement-assisted quantum convolutional codes starting from a stream of information qubits, ancilla qubits, and shared entangled bits.

We consider quantum walks on a finite graphs to which infinite tails are attached. We explore how... more We consider quantum walks on a finite graphs to which infinite tails are attached. We explore how the propagating and bound states depend on the structure of the finite graph. The S-matrix for such graphs is defined. Its unitarity is proved as well as some other of its properties such as its transformation under time reversal. A spectral decomposition of the identity for the Hamiltonian of the graph is derived using its eigenvectors. We derive formulas for the S-matrix of a graph under certain operation such as cutting a tail, attaching a tail or connecting two tails to form an edge.

The quantification and characterization of non-Markovian dynamics in quantum systems is an essent... more The quantification and characterization of non-Markovian dynamics in quantum systems is an essential endeavor both for the theory of open quantum systems and for a deeper understanding of the effects of non-Markovian noise on quantum technologies. Here, we introduce the robustness of non-Markovianity, an operationally-motivated, optimization-free measure that quantifies the minimum amount of Markovian noise that can be mixed with a non-Markovian evolution before it becomes Markovian. We show that this quantity is a bonafide non-Markovianity measure, since it is faithful, convex, and monotonic under composition with Markovian channels. A two-fold operational interpretation of this measure is provided, with the robustness measure quantifying an advantage in both a state discrimination and a channel discrimination task. Furthermore, we provide a closed-form analytical expression for this measure and show that, quite remarkably, the robustness measure is exactly equal to half the Rivas-...

This tutorial briefly introduces the important principles of quantum error correction and quantum... more This tutorial briefly introduces the important principles of quantum error correction and quantum error-correcting codes. We look at classical error correction, and the important limitations in working with quantum information. The basic structure of a quantum code is laid out, and how errors are detected and corrected. We introduce stabilizer codes and their connection to classical linear codes, and show how quantum codes can be constructed from classical codes. The problem of encoding and decoding is briefly discussed. Finally we touch on degeneracy and passive error correction in quantum codes.

One of the most important properties of orbital angular momentum (OAM) of photons is that the Hil... more One of the most important properties of orbital angular momentum (OAM) of photons is that the Hilbert space required to describe a general quantum state is infinite dimensional. In principle, this could allow for encoding arbitrarily large amounts of quantum information per photon, but in practice, this potential is limited by decoherence and errors. To determine whether photons with OAM are suitable for quantum communication, we numerically simulated their passage through a turbulent atmosphere and the resulting errors. We also proposed an encoding scheme to protect the photons from these errors, and characterized its effectiveness by the channel fidelity.

Entangled qubit can increase the capacity of quantum error correcting codes based on stabilizer c... more Entangled qubit can increase the capacity of quantum error correcting codes based on stabilizer codes. In addition, by using entanglement quantum stabilizer codes can be construct from classical linear codes that do not satisfy the dual-containing constraint. We show that it is possible to construct both additive and non-additive quantum codes using the codeword stabilized quantum code framework. Nonadditive codes may offer improved performance over the more common sta- bilizer codes. Like other entanglement-assisted codes, the encoding procedure acts only the qubits on Alice's side, and only these qubits are assumed to pass through the channel. However, errors the codeword stabilized quantum code framework gives rise to effective Z errors on Bob side. We use this scheme to construct new entanglement-assisted non-additive quantum codes, in particular, ((5,16,2;1)) and ((7,4,5;4)) codes.

Quantum Error Correction, 2009

We consider a composite system consisting of coupled particles, and investigate decoherence due t... more We consider a composite system consisting of coupled particles, and investigate decoherence due to coupling of the center-of-mass degree of freedom with the internal degrees of freedom. For a simple model of two bound particles, we show that in general such a decoherence effect exists, and leads to suppression of interference between different paths of the center-of-mass. For the special case of two harmonically-bound particles moving in an external potential in one dimension, we show that the coupling between the center-of-mass and internal degrees of freedom can be approximated as parametric driving, and that nontrivial coupling depends on the second derivative of the external potential. We find a partial solution to this parametric driving problem. For a simple interference experiment, consisting of two wave packets scattering off of a square well, we perform numerical simulations and show a close connection between suppression of interference and entanglement between the center-...

The scheme of entanglement-assisted quantum error-correcting (EAQEC) codes assumes that the ebits... more The scheme of entanglement-assisted quantum error-correcting (EAQEC) codes assumes that the ebits of the receiver are error-free. In practical situations, errors on these ebits are unavoidable, which diminishes the error-correcting ability of these codes. We consider two different versions of this problem. We first show that any (nondegenerate) standard stabilizer code can be transformed into an EAQEC code that can correct errors on the qubits of both sender and receiver. These EAQEC codes are equivalent to standard stabilizer codes, and hence the decoding techniques of standard stabilizer codes can be applied. Several EAQEC codes of this type are found to be optimal. In a second scheme, the receiver uses a standard stabilizer code to protect the ebits, which we call a "combination code." The performances of different quantum codes are compared in terms of the channel fidelity over the depolarizing channel. We give a formula for the channel fidelity over the depolarizing c...

It has recently been shown that there are efficient algorithms for quantum computers to solve cer... more It has recently been shown that there are efficient algorithms for quantum computers to solve certain problems, such as prime factorization, which are intractable to date on classical computers. The chances for practical implementation, however, are limited by decoherence, in which the effect of an external environment causes random errors in the quantum calculation. To combat this problem, quantum error correction schemes have been proposed, in which a single quantum bit (qubit) is "encoded" as a state of some larger number of qubits, chosen to resist particular types of errors. Most such schemes are vulnerable, however, to errors in the encoding and decoding itself. We examine two such schemes, in which a single qubit is encoded in a state of n qubits while subject to dephasing or to arbitrary isotropic noise. Using both analytical and numerical calculations, we argue that error correction remains beneficial in the presence of weak noise, and that there is an optimal tim...

Quantum walks can be defined in two quite distinct ways: discrete-time and continuous-time quantu... more Quantum walks can be defined in two quite distinct ways: discrete-time and continuous-time quantum walks (DTQWs and CTQWs). For classical random walks, there is a natural sense in which continuous-time walks are a limit of discrete-time walks. Quantum mechanically, in the discrete-time case, an additional "coin space" must be appended for the walk to have nontrivial time evolution. Continuous-time quantum walks, however, have no such constraints. This means that there is no completely straightforward way to treat a CTQW as a limit of DTQW, as can be done in the classical case. Various approaches to this problem have been taken in the past. We give a construction for walks on d-regular, d-colorable graphs when the coin flip operator is Hermitian: from a standard DTQW we construct a family of discrete-time walks with a well-defined continuous-time limit on a related graph. One can think of this limit as a coined continuous-time walk. We show that these CTQWs share some prope...

We develop a theory of entanglement distillation that exploits a convolutional coding structure. ... more We develop a theory of entanglement distillation that exploits a convolutional coding structure. We provide a method for converting an arbitrary classical binary or quaternary convolutional code into a convolutional entanglement distillation protocol. The imported classical convolutional code does not have to be dual-containing or self-orthogonal. The yield and error-correcting properties of such a protocol depend respectively on the rate and error-correcting properties of the imported classical convolutional code. A convolutional entanglement distillation protocol has several other benefits. Two parties sharing noisy ebits can distill noiseless ebits ``online'' as they acquire more noisy ebits. Distillation yield is high and decoding complexity is simple for a convolutional entanglement distillation protocol. Our theory of convolutional entanglement distillation reduces the problem of finding a good convolutional entanglement distillation protocol to the well-established pr...

It is well known that any projective measurement can be decomposed into a sequence of weak measur... more It is well known that any projective measurement can be decomposed into a sequence of weak measurements, which cause only small changes to the state. Similar constructions for generalized measurements, however, have relied on the use of an ancilla system. We show that any generalized measurement can be decomposed into a sequence of weak measurements without the use of an ancilla, and give an explicit construction for these weak measurements. The measurement procedure has the structure of a random walk along a curve in state space, with the measurement ending when one of the end points is reached. This shows that any measurement can be generated by weak measurements, and hence that weak measurements are universal. This may have important applications to the theory of entanglement.

Much of the theory of entanglement concerns the transformations that are possible to a state unde... more Much of the theory of entanglement concerns the transformations that are possible to a state under local operations with classical communication (LOCC); however, this set of operations is complicated and difficult to describe mathematically. An idea which has proven very useful is that of the entanglement monotone: a function of the state which is invariant under local unitary transformations and always decreases (or increases) on average after any local operation. In this paper we look on LOCC as the set of operations generated by infinitesimal local operations, operations which can be performed locally and which leave the state little changed. We show that a necessary and sufficient condition for a function of the state to be an entanglement monotone under local operations that do not involve information loss is that the function be a monotone under infinitesimal local operations. We then derive necessary and sufficient differential conditions for a function of the state to be an ...

Entanglement-assisted quantum error-correcting codes (EAQECCs) make use of pre-existing entanglem... more Entanglement-assisted quantum error-correcting codes (EAQECCs) make use of pre-existing entanglement between the sender and receiver to boost the rate of transmission. It is possible to construct an EAQECC from any classical linear code, unlike standard QECCs which can only be constructed from dual-containing codes. Operator quantum error-correcting codes (OQECCs) allow certain errors to be corrected (or prevented) passively, reducing the complexity of the correction procedure. We combine these two extensions of standard quantum error correction into a unified entanglement-assisted quantum error correction formalism. This new scheme, which we call entanglement-assisted operator quantum error correction (EAOQEC), is the most general and powerful quantum error-correcting technique known, retaining the advantages of both entanglement-assistance and passive correction. We present the formalism, show the considerable freedom in constructing EAOQECCs from classical codes, and demonstrate ...

We show how to protect a stream of quantum information from decoherence induced by a noisy quantu... more We show how to protect a stream of quantum information from decoherence induced by a noisy quantum communication channel. We exploit preshared entanglement and a convolutional coding structure to develop a theory of entanglement-assisted quantum convolutional coding. Our construction produces a Calderbank-Shor-Steane (CSS) entanglement-assisted quantum convolutional code from two arbitrary classical binary convolutional codes. The rate and error-correcting properties of the classical convolutional codes directly determine the corresponding properties of the resulting entanglement-assisted quantum convolutional code. We explain how to encode our CSS entanglement-assisted quantum convolutional codes starting from a stream of information qubits, ancilla qubits, and shared entangled bits.

We consider quantum walks on a finite graphs to which infinite tails are attached. We explore how... more We consider quantum walks on a finite graphs to which infinite tails are attached. We explore how the propagating and bound states depend on the structure of the finite graph. The S-matrix for such graphs is defined. Its unitarity is proved as well as some other of its properties such as its transformation under time reversal. A spectral decomposition of the identity for the Hamiltonian of the graph is derived using its eigenvectors. We derive formulas for the S-matrix of a graph under certain operation such as cutting a tail, attaching a tail or connecting two tails to form an edge.

The quantification and characterization of non-Markovian dynamics in quantum systems is an essent... more The quantification and characterization of non-Markovian dynamics in quantum systems is an essential endeavor both for the theory of open quantum systems and for a deeper understanding of the effects of non-Markovian noise on quantum technologies. Here, we introduce the robustness of non-Markovianity, an operationally-motivated, optimization-free measure that quantifies the minimum amount of Markovian noise that can be mixed with a non-Markovian evolution before it becomes Markovian. We show that this quantity is a bonafide non-Markovianity measure, since it is faithful, convex, and monotonic under composition with Markovian channels. A two-fold operational interpretation of this measure is provided, with the robustness measure quantifying an advantage in both a state discrimination and a channel discrimination task. Furthermore, we provide a closed-form analytical expression for this measure and show that, quite remarkably, the robustness measure is exactly equal to half the Rivas-...

This tutorial briefly introduces the important principles of quantum error correction and quantum... more This tutorial briefly introduces the important principles of quantum error correction and quantum error-correcting codes. We look at classical error correction, and the important limitations in working with quantum information. The basic structure of a quantum code is laid out, and how errors are detected and corrected. We introduce stabilizer codes and their connection to classical linear codes, and show how quantum codes can be constructed from classical codes. The problem of encoding and decoding is briefly discussed. Finally we touch on degeneracy and passive error correction in quantum codes.

One of the most important properties of orbital angular momentum (OAM) of photons is that the Hil... more One of the most important properties of orbital angular momentum (OAM) of photons is that the Hilbert space required to describe a general quantum state is infinite dimensional. In principle, this could allow for encoding arbitrarily large amounts of quantum information per photon, but in practice, this potential is limited by decoherence and errors. To determine whether photons with OAM are suitable for quantum communication, we numerically simulated their passage through a turbulent atmosphere and the resulting errors. We also proposed an encoding scheme to protect the photons from these errors, and characterized its effectiveness by the channel fidelity.

Entangled qubit can increase the capacity of quantum error correcting codes based on stabilizer c... more Entangled qubit can increase the capacity of quantum error correcting codes based on stabilizer codes. In addition, by using entanglement quantum stabilizer codes can be construct from classical linear codes that do not satisfy the dual-containing constraint. We show that it is possible to construct both additive and non-additive quantum codes using the codeword stabilized quantum code framework. Nonadditive codes may offer improved performance over the more common sta- bilizer codes. Like other entanglement-assisted codes, the encoding procedure acts only the qubits on Alice's side, and only these qubits are assumed to pass through the channel. However, errors the codeword stabilized quantum code framework gives rise to effective Z errors on Bob side. We use this scheme to construct new entanglement-assisted non-additive quantum codes, in particular, ((5,16,2;1)) and ((7,4,5;4)) codes.