Decomposition of quantum Markov chains and its applications

© 2018 Elsevier Inc. Markov chains have been widely employed as a fundamental model in the studies of probabilistic and stochastic communicating and concurrent systems. It is well-understood that decomposition techniques play a key role in reachability analysis and model-checking of Markov chains. (Discrete-time) quantum Markov chains have been introduced as a model of quantum communicating systems [1] and also a semantic model of quantum programs [2]. The BSCC (Bottom Strongly Connected Component) and stationary coherence decompositions of quantum Markov chains were introduced in [3–5]. This paper presents a new decomposition technique, namely periodic decomposition, for quantum Markov chains. We further establish a limit theorem for them. As an application, an algorithm to find a maximum dimensional noiseless subsystem of a quantum communicating system is given using decomposition techniques of quantum Markov chains

Fermi Markov states

We investigate the structure of the Markov states on general Fermion algebras. The situation treated in the present paper covers, beyond the d--Markov states on the CAR algebra on Z (i.e. when there are d--annihilators and creators on each site), also the non homogeneous case (i.e. when the numbers of generators depends on the localization). The present analysis provides the first necessary step for the study of the general properties, and the construction of nontrivial examples of Fermi Markov states on the d--standard lattice, that is the Fermi Markov fields. Natural connections with the KMS boundary condition and entropy of Fermi Markov states are studied in detail. Apart from a class of Markov states quite similar to those arising in the tensor product algebras (called "strongly even" in the sequel), other interesting examples of Fermi Markov states naturally appear. Contrarily to the strongly even examples, the latter are highly entangled and it is expected that they describe interactions which are not "commuting nearest neighbor". Therefore, the non strongly even Markov states, in addition to the natural applications to quantum statistical mechanics, might be of interest for the information theory as well.Comment: 32 pages. Journal of Operator Theory, to appea

Quantum walks can find a marked element on any graph

We solve an open problem by constructing quantum walks that not only detect but also find marked vertices in a graph. In the case when the marked set $M$ consists of a single vertex, the number of steps of the quantum walk is quadratically smaller than the classical hitting time $HT(P,M)$ of any reversible random walk $P$ on the graph. In the case of multiple marked elements, the number of steps is given in terms of a related quantity $HT^+(\mathit{P,M})$ which we call extended hitting time. Our approach is new, simpler and more general than previous ones. We introduce a notion of interpolation between the random walk $P$ and the absorbing walk $P'$, whose marked states are absorbing. Then our quantum walk is simply the quantum analogue of this interpolation. Contrary to previous approaches, our results remain valid when the random walk $P$ is not state-transitive. We also provide algorithms in the cases when only approximations or bounds on parameters $p_M$ (the probability of picking a marked vertex from the stationary distribution) and $HT^+(\mathit{P,M})$ are known.Comment: 50 page

Infinite dimensional entangled Markov chains

We continue the analysis of nontrivial examples of quantum Markov processes. This is done by applying the construction of entangled Markov chains obtained from classical Markov chains with infinite state--space. The formula giving the joint correlations arises from the corresponding classical formula by replacing the usual matrix multiplication by the Schur multiplication. In this way, we provide nontrivial examples of entangled Markov chains on $\bar{\cup_{J\subset Z} \bar{\otimes}_{J}F}^{C^{*}}$, $F$ being any infinite dimensional type $I$ factor, $J$ a finite interval of $Z$, and the bar the von Neumann tensor product between von Neumann algebras. We then have new nontrivial examples of quantum random walks which could play a r\^ole in quantum information theory. In view of applications to quantum statistical mechanics too, we see that the ergodic type of an entangled Markov chain is completely determined by the corresponding ergodic type of the underlying classical chain, provided that the latter admits an invariant probability distribution. This result parallels the corresponding one relative to the finite dimensional case. Finally, starting from random walks on discrete ICC groups, we exhibit examples of quantum Markov processes based on type $II_1$ von Neumann factors.Comment: 16 page

Ergodic Properties of Quantum Birth and Death Chains

We study a class of quantum Markov processes that, on the one hand, is inspired by the micromaser experiment in quantum optics and, on the other hand, by classical birth and death processes. We prove some general geometric properties and irreducibility for non-degenerated parameters. Furthermore, we analyze ergodic properties of the corresponding transition operators. For homogeneous birth and death rates we show how these can be fully determined by explicit calculation. As for classical birth and death chains we obtain a rich yet simple class of quantum Markov chains on an infinite space, which allow only local transitions while having divers ergodic properties.Comment: 26 pages, 7 figure