Concatenated Quantum Codes Constructible in Polynomial Time: Efficient Decoding and Error Correction

A method for concatenating quantum error-correcting codes is presented. The method is applicable to a wide class of quantum error-correcting codes known as Calderbank-Shor-Steane (CSS) codes. As a result, codes that achieve a high rate in the Shannon theoretic sense and that are decodable in polynomial time are presented. The rate is the highest among those known to be achievable by CSS codes. Moreover, the best known lower bound on the greatest minimum distance of codes constructible in polynomial time is improved for a wide range.Comment: 16 pages, 3 figures. Ver.4: Title changed. Ver.3: Due to a request of the AE of the journal, the present version has become a combination of (thoroughly revised) quant-ph/0610194 and the former quant-ph/0610195. Problem formulations of polynomial complexity are strictly followed. An erroneous instance of a lower bound on minimum distance was remove

Complexity vs Energy: Theory of Computation and Theoretical Physics

This paper is a survey dedicated to the analogy between the notions of {\it complexity} in theoretical computer science and {\it energy} in physics. This analogy is not metaphorical: I describe three precise mathematical contexts, suggested recently, in which mathematics related to (un)computability is inspired by and to a degree reproduces formalisms of statistical physics and quantum field theory.Comment: 23 pages. Talk at the satellite conference to ECM 2012, "QQQ Algebra, Geometry, Information", Tallinn, July 9-12, 201

Quantum Stabilizer Codes, Lattices, and CFTs

There is a rich connection between classical error-correcting codes, Euclidean lattices, and chiral conformal field theories. Here we show that quantum error-correcting codes, those of the stabilizer type, are related to Lorentzian lattices and non-chiral CFTs. More specifically, real self-dual stabilizer codes can be associated with even self-dual Lorentzian lattices, and thus define Narain CFTs. We dub the resulting theories code CFTs and study their properties. T-duality transformations of a code CFT, at the level of the underlying code, reduce to code equivalences. By means of such equivalences, any stabilizer code can be reduced to a graph code. We can therefore represent code CFTs by graphs. We study code CFTs with small central charge c = n ≤ 12, and find many interesting examples. Among them is a non-chiral E8 theory, which is based on the root lattice of E8 understood as an even self-dual Lorentzian lattice. By analyzing all graphs with n ≤ 8 nodes we find many pairs and triples of physically distinct isospectral theories. We also construct numerous modular invariant functions satisfying all the basic properties expected of the CFT partition function, yet which are not partition functions of any known CFTs. We consider the ensemble average over all code theories, calculate the corresponding partition function, and discuss its possible holographic interpretation. The paper is written in a self-contained manner, and includes an extensive pedagogical introduction and many explicit examples

Quantum Error-Control Codes

The article surveys quantum error control, focusing on quantum stabilizer codes, stressing on the how to use classical codes to design good quantum codes. It is to appear as a book chapter in "A Concise Encyclopedia of Coding Theory," edited by C. Huffman, P. Sole and J-L Kim, to be published by CRC Press

Symplectic self-orthogonal quasi-cyclic codes

In this paper, we obtain sufficient and necessary conditions for quasi-cyclic codes with index even to be symplectic self-orthogonal. Then, we propose a method for constructing symplectic self-orthogonal quasi-cyclic codes, which allows arbitrary polynomials that coprime $x^{n}-1$ to construct symplectic self-orthogonal codes. Moreover, by decomposing the space of quasi-cyclic codes, we provide lower and upper bounds on the minimum symplectic distances of a class of 1-generator quasi-cyclic codes and their symplectic dual codes. Finally, we construct many binary symplectic self-orthogonal codes with excellent parameters, corresponding to 117 record-breaking quantum codes, improving Grassl's table (Bounds on the Minimum Distance of Quantum Codes. http://www.codetables.de)

Commutative association schemes

Association schemes were originally introduced by Bose and his co-workers in the design of statistical experiments. Since that point of inception, the concept has proved useful in the study of group actions, in algebraic graph theory, in algebraic coding theory, and in areas as far afield as knot theory and numerical integration. This branch of the theory, viewed in this collection of surveys as the "commutative case," has seen significant activity in the last few decades. The goal of the present survey is to discuss the most important new developments in several directions, including Gelfand pairs, cometric association schemes, Delsarte Theory, spin models and the semidefinite programming technique. The narrative follows a thread through this list of topics, this being the contrast between combinatorial symmetry and group-theoretic symmetry, culminating in Schrijver's SDP bound for binary codes (based on group actions) and its connection to the Terwilliger algebra (based on combinatorial symmetry). We propose this new role of the Terwilliger algebra in Delsarte Theory as a central topic for future work.Comment: 36 page

Algebraic Techniques for Low Communication Secure Protocols

Internet communication is often encrypted with the aid of mathematical problems that are hard to solve. Another method to secure electronic communication is the use of a digital lock of which the digital key must be exchanged first. PhD student Robbert de Haan (CWI) researched models for a guaranteed safe communication between two people without the exchange of a digital key and without assumptions concerning the practical difficulty of solving certain mathematical problems. In ancient times Julius Caesar used secret codes to make his messages illegible for spies. He upped every letter of the alphabet with three positions: A became D, Z became C, and so on. Usually, cryptographers research secure communication between two people through one channel that can be monitored by malevolent people. De Haan studied the use of multiple channels. A minority of these channels may be in the hands of adversaries that can intercept, replace or block the message. He proved the most efficient way to securely communicate along these channels and thus solved a fundamental cryptography problem that was introduced almost 20 years ago by Dole, Dwork, Naor and Yung