Efficient Quantum Walk on the Grid with Multiple Marked Elements

We give a quantum algorithm for finding a marked element on the grid when there are multiple marked elements. Our algorithm uses quadratically fewer steps than a random walk on the grid, ignoring logarithmic factors. This is the first known quantum walk that finds a marked element in a number of steps less than the square-root of the extended hitting time. We also give a new tighter upper bound on the extended hitting time of a marked subset, expressed in terms of the hitting times of its members

Search via Quantum Walk

We propose a new method for designing quantum search algorithms for finding a "marked" element in the state space of a classical Markov chain. The algorithm is based on a quantum walk \'a la Szegedy (2004) that is defined in terms of the Markov chain. The main new idea is to apply quantum phase estimation to the quantum walk in order to implement an approximate reflection operator. This operator is then used in an amplitude amplification scheme. As a result we considerably expand the scope of the previous approaches of Ambainis (2004) and Szegedy (2004). Our algorithm combines the benefits of these approaches in terms of being able to find marked elements, incurring the smaller cost of the two, and being applicable to a larger class of Markov chains. In addition, it is conceptually simple and avoids some technical difficulties in the previous analyses of several algorithms based on quantum walk.Comment: 21 pages. Various modifications and improvements, especially in Section

On the probability of finding marked connected components using quantum walks

Finding a marked vertex in a graph can be a complicated task when using quantum walks. Recent results show that for two or more adjacent marked vertices search by quantum walk with Grover's coin may have no speed-up over classical exhaustive search. In this paper, we analyze the probability of finding a marked vertex for a set of connected components of marked vertices. We prove two upper bounds on the probability of finding a marked vertex and sketch further research directions.Comment: 13 pages. To appear at Lobachevskii Journal of Mathematic

Quantum walks: a comprehensive review

Quantum walks, the quantum mechanical counterpart of classical random walks, is an advanced tool for building quantum algorithms that has been recently shown to constitute a universal model of quantum computation. Quantum walks is now a solid field of research of quantum computation full of exciting open problems for physicists, computer scientists, mathematicians and engineers. In this paper we review theoretical advances on the foundations of both discrete- and continuous-time quantum walks, together with the role that randomness plays in quantum walks, the connections between the mathematical models of coined discrete quantum walks and continuous quantum walks, the quantumness of quantum walks, a summary of papers published on discrete quantum walks and entanglement as well as a succinct review of experimental proposals and realizations of discrete-time quantum walks. Furthermore, we have reviewed several algorithms based on both discrete- and continuous-time quantum walks as well as a most important result: the computational universality of both continuous- and discrete- time quantum walks.Comment: Paper accepted for publication in Quantum Information Processing Journa