Single-step controlled-NOT logic from any exchange interaction

A self-contained approach to studying the unitary evolution of coupled qubits is introduced, capable of addressing a variety of physical systems described by exchange Hamiltonians containing Rabi terms. The method automatically determines both the Weyl chamber steering trajectory and the accompanying local rotations. Particular attention is paid to the case of anisotropic exchange with tracking controls, which is solved analytically. It is shown that, if computational subspace is well isolated, any exchange interaction can always generate high-fidelity, single-step controlled-NOT (CNOT) logic, provided that both qubits can be individually manipulated. The results are then applied to superconducting qubit architectures, for which several CNOT gate implementations are identified. The paper concludes with consideration of two CNOT gate designs having high efficiency and operating with no significant leakage to higher-lying non-computational states.Comment: 12 pages + 7 figures; revised version; title change

Derivation of the Lorentz transformation without the use of Einstein's second postulate

Derivation of the Lorentz transformation without the use of Einstein's Second Postulate is provided along the lines of Ignatowsky, Terletskii, and others. This is a write-up of the lecture first delivered in PHYS 4202 E&M class during the Spring semester of 2014 at the University of Georgia. The main motivation for pursuing this approach was to develop a better understanding of why the faster-than-light neutrino controversy (OPERA experiment, 2011) was much ado about nothing.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures; introductory special relativity; lecture note

Tunneling out of metastable vacuum in a system consisting of two capacitively coupled phase qubits

Using a powerful combination of Coleman's instanton technique and the method of Banks and Bender, the exponential factor for the zero temperature rate of tunneling out of metastable vacuum in a system of two identical capacitively coupled phase qubits is calculated in closed form to second order in asymmetry parameter for a special case of intermediate coupling C=C_J/2.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures (select PostScript to download Fig. 1). Corrected version, to appear in PR