110 research outputs found
Quantum tests of causal structures and non-orthogonal states
This thesis details two experimental tests that can be applied to particular quantum states to reveal important information. We begin by discussing the relevant background in quantum information. We introduce qubits and qudits as basic quantum states, and we discuss the evolution and measurement of quantum states. We then discuss quantum state tomography as a means by which to obtain complete information about a state, followed by a discussion of state discrimination as a means by which to determine the state given the promise that it is drawn from some known set. We then discuss relevant experimental techniques in quantum optics, including measurement, generation of entanglement, and generation of single photons from entanglement.
The first experiment we discuss deals with the causal structure of a system, which is the description of the origin of correlations between two or more states. The causal structure can be direct-cause, meaning that one state causes the other; common-cause, meaning that both states are caused by another; or hybrid-cause, which is a combination of the two. We perform the first implementation of a new type of tomography to determine the causal structure; this is called causal tomography and functions regardless of whether two qubits are related by a common state, a process, or some combination thereof. We implement a process on two entangled photons so that we can select the exact causal structure that results, which ranges continuously between direct-cause and common-cause structures. Using causal tomography, we recover causal structures that closely match expected results and demonstrate that quantum mechanics provides an advantage in causal inference.
The second experiment we discuss deals with the unambiguous discrimination of multiple quantum states. For the first time, we apply the principles of unambiguous state discrimination to high-dimensional systems. Given a state chosen randomly out of d possible states encoded in d dimensions, we implement a procedure for determining which state was chosen; this procedure in theory functions without error. We encode and detect the states in the orbital angular momentum degree of freedom up to dimension d=14. Although no experiment can provide perfectly error-free measurement due to inevitable imperfections, we obtain an error rate below the theoretical error rate of minimum-error state discrimination for dimensions up to d=12. At the time of submission of this thesis, this work has been accepted for publication in Physical Review Letters
Quantum statistical inference and communication
This thesis studies the limits on the performances of inference tasks with quantum data
and quantum operations. Our results can be divided in two main parts.
In the first part, we study how to infer relative properties of sets of quantum states,
given a certain amount of copies of the states. We investigate the performance of optimal
inference strategies according to several figures of merit which quantifies the precision of
the inference. Since we are not interested in obtaining a complete reconstruction of the
states, optimal strategies do not require to perform quantum tomography. In particular,
we address the following problems:
- We evaluate the asymptotic error probabilities of optimal learning machines for
quantum state discrimination. Here, a machine receives a number of copies of a
pair of unknown states, which can be seen as training data, together with a test
system which is initialized in one of the states of the pair with equal probability.
The goal is to implement a measurement to discriminate in which state the test
system is, minimizing the error probability. We analyze the optimal strategies for
a number of different settings, differing on the prior incomplete information on the
states available to the agent.
- We evaluate the limits on the precision of the estimation of the overlap between two
unknown pure states, given N and M copies of each state. We find an asymptotic
expansion of a Fisher information associated with the estimation problem, which
gives a lower bound on the mean square error of any estimator. We compute the
minimum average mean square error for random pure states, and we evaluate the
effect of depolarizing noise on qubit states. We compare the performance of the
optimal estimation strategy with the performances of other intuitive strategies,
such as the swap test and measurements based on estimating the states.
- We evaluate how many samples from a collection of N d-dimensional states are
necessary to understand with high probability if the collection is made of identical
states or they differ more than a threshold according to a motivated closeness
measure. The access to copies of the states in the collection is given as follows:
each time the agent ask for a copy of the states, the agent receives one of the states with some fixed probability, together with a different label for each state in the collection. We prove that the problem can be solved with O(pNd=2) copies, and
that this scaling is optimal up to a constant independent on d;N; .
In the second part, we study optimal classical and quantum communication rates for
several physically motivated noise models.
- The quantum and private capacities of most realistic channels cannot be evaluated
from their regularized expressions. We design several degradable extensions
for notable channels, obtaining upper bounds on the quantum and private capacities
of the original channels. We obtain sufficient conditions for the degradability
of flagged extensions of channels which are convex combination of other channels.
These sufficient conditions are easy to verify and simplify the construction of
degradable extensions.
- We consider the problem of transmitting classical information with continuous variable
systems and an energy constraint, when it is impossible to maintain a shared
reference frame and in presence of losses. At variance with phase-insensitive noise
models, we show that, in some regimes, squeezing improves the communication
rates with respect to coherent state sources and with respect to sources producing
up to two-photon Fock states. We give upper and lower bounds on the optimal
coherent state rate and show that using part of the energy to repeatedly restore a
phase reference is strictly suboptimal for high energies
Using hyperentanglement for advanced quantum communication
The field of quantum information science promises incredible enhancements in computing, metrology, simulation, and communication, but the challenge of creating, manipulating, and measuring the large quantum states has limited current implementations of such techniques. Such limitations affect photonic quantum information in particular, because photons lack the strong nonlinear interactions required for building up many-particle entangled states and performing multi-photon gates; nevertheless, because photons are currently the only "flying qubit", i.e., qubits that are mobile, they are a required resource for quantum communication protocols. One strategy to partially mitigate this limitation is to encode multiple entangled qubits on the different degrees of freedom of a single pair of photons. Such "hyperentangled" quantum states may be created with enough qubits to enable a whole new class of quantum information experiments. Furthermore, while nonlinear interactions are required to implement multi-qubit gates between qubits encoded on different particles, such gates can be implemented between qubits encoded on the same particle using only linear elements, enabling a much broader class of measurements. We use hyperentangled states to implement various quantum communication and quantum metrology protocols. Specifically, we demonstrate that hyperentangled photons can be used to increase the classical channel capacity of a quantum channel, transport quantum information between two remote parties efficiently and deterministically, and efficiently characterize quantum channels. We will discuss how to produce, manipulate, and measure hyperentangled states and discuss how entanglement in multiple degrees of freedom enables each technique. Finally, we discuss the limitations of each of these techniques and how they might be improved as technology advances
Quantum Contextuality
A central result in the foundations of quantum mechanics is the
Kochen-Specker theorem. In short, it states that quantum mechanics is in
conflict with classical models in which the result of a measurement does not
depend on which other compatible measurements are jointly performed. Here,
compatible measurements are those that can be performed simultaneously or in
any order without disturbance. This conflict is generically called quantum
contextuality. In this article, we present an introduction to this subject and
its current status. We review several proofs of the Kochen-Specker theorem and
different notions of contextuality. We explain how to experimentally test some
of these notions and discuss connections between contextuality and nonlocality
or graph theory. Finally, we review some applications of contextuality in
quantum information processing.Comment: 63 pages, 20 figures. Updated version. Comments still welcome
Continuous Measurement and Stochastic Methods in Quantum Optical Systems
This dissertation studies the statistics and modeling of a quantum system
probed by a coherent laser field. We focus on an ensemble of qubits
dispersively coupled to a traveling wave light field. The first research topic
explores the quantum measurement statistics of a quasi-monochromatic laser
probe. We identify the shortest timescale that successive measurements
approximately commute. Our model predicts that for a probe in the near
infrared, noncommuting measurement effects are apparent for subpicosecond
times.
The second dissertation topic attempts to find an approximation to a
conditional master equation, which maps identical product states to identical
product states. Through a technique known as projection filtering, we find such
a equation for an ensemble of qubits experiencing a diffusive measurement of a
collective angular momentum projection, and global rotations. We then test the
quality of the approximation through numerical simulations. In the presence of
strong randomized rotations, the approximation reproduces the exact expectation
values to within 95%.
The final topic applies the projection filter to the problem of state
reconstruction. We find an initial state estimate based on a single continuous
measurement of an identically prepared atomic ensemble. Given the ability to
make a continuous collective measurement and simultaneously applying time
varying controls, it is possible to find an accurate estimate given based upon
a single measurement realization. Here we explore the fundamental limits of
this protocol by studying an idealized model for pure qubits, which is limited
only by measurement backaction. Using the exact dynamics to produce simulated
measurements, we then numerically search for a maximum likelihood estimate
based on the approximate expression. Our estimation technique nearly achieves
an average fidelity bound set by an optimum POVM.Comment: PhD Dissertatio
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