Subspace confinement : how good is your qubit?

The basic operating element of standard quantum computation is the qubit, an isolated two-level system that can be accurately controlled, initialized and measured. However, the majority of proposed physical architectures for quantum computation are built from systems that contain much more complicated Hilbert space structures. Hence, defining a qubit requires the identification of an appropriate controllable two-dimensional sub-system. This prompts the obvious question of how well a qubit, thus defined, is confined to this subspace, and whether we can experimentally quantify the potential leakage into states outside the qubit subspace. We demonstrate how subspace leakage can be characterized using minimal theoretical assumptions by examining the Fourier spectrum of the oscillation experiment

Nash equilibria in quantum games with generalized two-parameter strategies

In the Eisert protocol for 2 X 2 quantum games [Phys. Rev. Lett. 83, 3077], a number of authors have investigated the features arising from making the strategic space a two-parameter subset of single qubit unitary operators. We argue that the new Nash equilibria and the classical-quantum transitions that occur are simply an artifact of the particular strategy space chosen. By choosing a different, but equally plausible, two-parameter strategic space we show that different Nash equilibria with different classical-quantum transitions can arise. We generalize the two-parameter strategies and also consider these strategies in a multiplayer setting.Comment: 19 pages, 2 eps figure

Equivalence between Bell inequalities and quantum Minority game

We show that, for a continuous set of entangled four-partite states, the task of maximizing the payoff in the symmetric-strategy four-player quantum Minority game is equivalent to maximizing the violation of a four-particle Bell inequality with each observer choosing the same set of two dichotomic observables. We conclude the existence of direct correspondences between (i) the payoff rule and Bell inequalities, and (ii) the strategy and the choice of measured observables in evaluating these Bell inequalities. We also show that such a correspondence between Bell polynomials (in a single plane) and four-player, symmetric, binary-choice quantum games is unique to the four-player quantum Minority game and its "anti-Minority" version. This indicates that the four-player Minority game not only plays a special role among quantum games but also in studies of Bell-type quantum nonlocality.Comment: v1 4 pages ReTeX, 2 figures (1 EPS); v2 11 pages LateX, 2 figures, changes to format, minor changes to wording (including title) and one new finding added on uniqueness of resul

Rapid quantitative isolation and esterification of urinary porphyrins for chromatographic analysis

In the midst of the epitaxial circuitry revolution in silicon technology, we look ahead to the next paradigm shift: effective use of the third dimension - in particular, its combination with epitaxial technology. We perform ab initio calculations of atomically thin epitaxial bilayers in silicon, investigating the fundamental electronic properties of monolayer pairs. Quantitative band splittings and the electronic density are presented, along with effects of the layers' relative alignment and comments on disordered systems, and for the first time, the effective electronic widths of such device components are calculated

Ohm\u27s Law Survives to the Atomic Scale

As silicon electronics approaches the atomic scale, interconnects and circuitry become comparable in size to the active device components. Maintaining low electrical resistivity at this scale is challenging because of the presence of confining surfaces and interfaces. We report on the fabrication of wires in silicon—only one atom tall and four atoms wide—with exceptionally low resistivity (~0.3 milliohm-centimeters) and the current-carrying capabilities of copper. By embedding phosphorus atoms within a silicon crystal with an average spacing of less than 1 nanometer, we achieved a diameter-independent resistivity, which demonstrates ohmic scaling to the atomic limit. Atomistic tight-binding calculations confirm the metallicity of these atomic-scale wires, which pave the way for single-atom device architectures for both classical and quantum information processing