Experimental demonstration of a graph state quantum error-correction code

Scalable quantum computing and communication requires the protection of quantum information from the detrimental effects of decoherence and noise. Previous work tackling this problem has relied on the original circuit model for quantum computing. However, recently a family of entangled resources known as graph states has emerged as a versatile alternative for protecting quantum information. Depending on the graph's structure, errors can be detected and corrected in an efficient way using measurement-based techniques. In this article we report an experimental demonstration of error correction using a graph state code. We have used an all-optical setup to encode quantum information into photons representing a four-qubit graph state. We are able to reliably detect errors and correct against qubit loss. The graph we have realized is setup independent, thus it could be employed in other physical settings. Our results show that graph state codes are a promising approach for achieving scalable quantum information processing

rPICARD: A CASA-based Calibration Pipeline for VLBI Data

Currently, HOPS and AIPS are the primary choices for the time-consuming process of (millimeter) Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) data calibration. However, for a full end-to-end pipeline, they either lack the ability to perform easily scriptable incremental calibration or do not provide full control over the workflow with the ability to manipulate and edit calibration solutions directly. The Common Astronomy Software Application (CASA) offers all these abilities, together with a secure development future and an intuitive Python interface, which is very attractive for young radio astronomers. Inspired by the recent addition of a global fringe-fitter, the capability to convert FITS-IDI files to measurement sets, and amplitude calibration routines based on ANTAB metadata, we have developed the the CASA-based Radboud PIpeline for the Calibration of high Angular Resolution Data (rPICARD). The pipeline will be able to handle data from multiple arrays: EHT, GMVA, VLBA and the EVN in the first release. Polarization and phase-referencing calibration are supported and a spectral line mode will be added in the future. The large bandwidths of future radio observatories ask for a scalable reduction software. Within CASA, a message passing interface (MPI) implementation is used for parallelization, reducing the total time needed for processing. The most significant gain is obtained for the time-consuming fringe-fitting task where each scan be processed in parallel.Comment: 6 pages, 1 figure, EVN 2018 symposium proceeding

Electric field effects on magnetotransport properties of multiferroic Py/YMnO3/Pt heterostructures

We report on the exchange bias between antiferromagnetic and ferroelectric hexagonal YMnO3 epitaxial thin films sandwiched between a metallic electrode (Pt) and a soft ferromagnetic layer (Py). Anisotropic magnetoresistance measurements are performed to monitor the presence of an exchange bias field. When the heteroestructure is biased by an electric field, it turns out that the exchange bias field is suppressed. We discuss the dependence of the observed effect on the amplitude and polarity of the electric field. Particular attention is devoted to the role of current leakage across the ferroelectric layer.Comment: Accepted for publication in Philosophical Magazine Letters (Special issue on multiferroics

Spin-orbit effects on the Larmor dispersion relation in GaAs quantum wells

We have studied the relevance of spin-orbit coupling to the dispersion 00009 relation of the Larmor resonance observed in inelastic light scattering and electron-spin resonance experiments on GaAs quantum wells. We show that the spin-orbit interaction, here described by a sum of Dresselhaus and Bychkov-Rashba terms, couples Zeeman and spin-density excitations. We have evaluated its contribution to the spin splitting as a function of the magnetic field $B$, and have found that in the small $B$ limit, the spin-orbit interaction does not contribute to the spin splitting, whereas at high magnetic fields it yields a $B$ independent contribution to the spin splitting given by $2(\lambda_R^2-\lambda_D^2)$, with $\lambda_{R,D}$ being the intensity of the Bychkov-Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit terms.Comment: To be published in Physical Review

LeMMINGs III. The e-MERLIN legacy survey of the Palomar sample: exploring the origin of nuclear radio emission in active and inactive galaxies through the [O III] - radio connection

What determines the nuclear radio emission in local galaxies? To address this question, we combine optical [O III] line emission, robust black hole (BH) mass estimates, and high-resolution e-MERLIN 1.5-GHz data, from the LeMMINGs survey, of a statistically complete sample of 280 nearby optically active (LINER and Seyfert) and inactive [H II and absorption line galaxies (ALGs)] galaxies. Using [O III] luminosity (L[O III]) as a proxy for the accretion power, local galaxies follow distinct sequences in the optical-radio planes of BH activity, which suggest different origins of the nuclear radio emission for the optical classes. The 1.5-GHz radio luminosity of their parsec-scale cores (Lcore) is found to scale with BH mass (Mbh) and [O III] luminosity. Below Mbh ~ 10^(6.5) Msun, stellar processes from non-jetted H II galaxies dominate with Lcore \propto Mbh^(0.62\pm0.33) and Lcore \propto L[O III]^(0.79\pm0.30). Above Mbh ~ 10^(6.5) Msun, accretion-driven processes dominate with Lcore \propto Mbh^(1.5-1.65) and Lcore \propto L[O III]^(0.99-1.31) for active galaxies: radio-quiet/loud LINERs, Seyferts, and jetted H II galaxies always display (although low) signatures of radio-emitting BH activity, with L1.5GHz > 10^(19.8) W Hz^(-1) and Mbh > 10^7 Msun, on a broad range of Eddington-scaled accretion rates (mdot). Radio-quiet and radio-loud LINERs are powered by low-mdot discs launching sub-relativistic and relativistic jets, respectively. Low-power slow jets and disc/corona winds from moderately high to high-mdot discs account for the compact and edge-brightened jets of Seyferts, respectively. Jetted H II galaxies may host weakly active BHs. Fuel-starved BHs and recurrent activity account for ALG properties. In conclusion, specific accretion-ejection states of active BHs determine the radio production and the optical classification of local active galaxies

The low-mass diskless population of Corona Australis

We combine published optical and near-infrared photometry to identify new low-mass candidate members in an area of about 0.64 deg^2 in Corona Australis with the S-parameter method. Five new candidate members of the region are selected. They have estimated ages between 3 and 15 Myr and masses between 0.05 and 0.15 M_⊙. With Spitzer photometry we confirm that these objects are not surrounded by optically thick disks. However, one of them is found to display excess at 24 μm, thus suggesting it harbors a disk with an inner hole. With an estimated mass of 0.07 M_⊙ according to the SED fitting, this is one of the lowest-mass objects reported to possess a transitional disk. Including these new members, the fraction of disks is about 50% among the total Corona Australis population selected by the same criteria, lower than the 70% fraction reported earlier for this region. Even so, we find a ratio of transitional to primordial disks (45%) very similar to the value derived by previous authors. This ratio is higher than for solar-type stars (5–10%), suggesting that disk evolution is faster in the latter, and/or that the “transitional disk” stage is not such a short-lived step for very low-mass objects. However, this impression needs to be confirmed with better statistics

Growth of graph states in quantum networks

We propose a scheme to distribute graph states over quantum networks in the presence of noise in the channels and in the operations. The protocol can be implemented efficiently for large graph sates of arbitrary (complex) topology. We benchmark our scheme with two protocols where each connected component is prepared in a node belonging to the component and subsequently distributed via quantum repeaters to the remaining connected nodes. We show that the fidelity of the generated graphs can be written as the partition function of a classical Ising-type Hamiltonian. We give exact expressions of the fidelity of the linear cluster and results for its decay rate in random graphs with arbitrary (uncorrelated) degree distributions.Comment: 16 pages, 7 figure

Simple waves in relativistic fluids

We consider the Riemann problem for relativistic flows of polytropic fluids and find relations for the flow characteristics. Evolution of physical quantities take especially simple form for the case of cold magnetized plasmas. We find exact, explicit analytical solutions for one dimensional expansion of magnetized plasma into vacuum, valid for arbitrary magnetization. We also consider expansion into cold unmagnetized external medium both for stationary initial conditions and for initially moving plasma, as well as reflection of rarefaction wave from a wall. We also find self-similar structure of three-dimensional magnetized outflows into vacuum, valid close to the plasma-vacuum interface. The key results of this work, the self-similar solutions, were incorporated post-initial submission into appendices of the published version of Granot et al. (2010)