Convex politopes and quantum separability

We advance a novel perspective of the entanglement issue that appeals to the Schlienz-Mahler measure [Phys. Rev. A 52, 4396 (1995)]. Related to it, we propose an criterium based on the consideration of convex subsets of quantum states. This criterium generalizes a property of product states to convex subsets (of the set of quantum-states) that is able to uncover a new geometrical property of the separability property

Decoherence-assisted transport in quantum networks

It is shown that energy transfer in a homogeneous fully connected quantum network is assisted by a decohering interaction with environmental spins. Analytic expressions for the transfer probabilities are obtained for the zero temperature case, and the effect is shown to persist at physiological temperatures. This model of decoherence-assisted energy transfer is applied to the Fenna-Matthews-Olson complex

Protocols for entanglement transformations of bipartite pure states

We present a general theoretical framework for both deterministic and probabilistic entanglement transformations of bipartite pure states achieved via local operations and classical communication. This framework unifies and greatly simplifies previous works. A necessary condition for ``pure contraction'' transformations is given. Finally, constructive protocols to achieve both probabilistic and deterministic entanglement transformations are presented.Comment: 7 pages, no figures. Version slightly modified on Physical Review A reques

Observable geometric phase induced by a cyclically evolving dissipative process

In a prevous paper (Phys. Rev. Lett. 96, 150403 (2006)) we have proposed a new way to generate an observable geometric phase on a quantum system by means of a completely incoherent phenomenon. The basic idea was to force the ground state of the system to evolve ciclically by "adiabatically" manipulating the environment with which it interacts. The specific scheme we have previously analyzed, consisting of a multilevel atom interacting with a broad-band squeezed vacuum bosonic bath whose squeezing parameters are smoothly changed in time along a closed loop, is here solved in a more direct way. This new solution emphasizes how the geometric phase on the ground state of the system is indeed due to a purely incoherent dynamicsComment: 6 pages, 1 figur

Experimental Detection of Entanglement with Polarized Photons

We report on the first experimental realization of the entanglement witness for polarization entangled photons. It represents a recently discovered significant quantum information protocol which is based on few local measurements. The present demonstration has been applied to the so-called Werner states, a family of ''mixed'' quantum states that include both entangled and non entangled states. These states have been generated by a novel high brilliance source of entanglement which allows to continuously tune the degree of mixedness

Using of small-scale quantum computers in cryptography with many-qubit entangled states

We propose a new cryptographic protocol. It is suggested to encode information in ordinary binary form into many-qubit entangled states with the help of a quantum computer. A state of qubits (realized, e.g., with photons) is transmitted through a quantum channel to the addressee, who applies a quantum computer tuned to realize the inverse unitary transformation decoding of the message. Different ways of eavesdropping are considered, and an estimate of the time needed for determining the secret unitary transformation is given. It is shown that using even small quantum computers can serve as a basis for very efficient cryptographic protocols. For a suggested cryptographic protocol, the time scale on which communication can be considered secure is exponential in the number of qubits in the entangled states and in the number of gates used to construct the quantum network

Multi-Player Quantum Games

Recently the concept of quantum information has been introduced into game theory. Here we present the first study of quantum games with more than two players. We discover that such games can possess a new form of equilibrium strategy, one which has no analogue either in traditional games or even in two-player quantum games. In these `pure' coherent equilibria, entanglement shared among multiple players enables new kinds of cooperative behavior: indeed it can act as a contract, in the sense that it prevents players from successfully betraying one-another.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figs. Substantial revisons inc. new result

Simple Quantum Error Correcting Codes

Methods of finding good quantum error correcting codes are discussed, and many example codes are presented. The recipe C_2^{\perp} \subseteq C_1, where C_1 and C_2 are classical codes, is used to obtain codes for up to 16 information qubits with correction of small numbers of errors. The results are tabulated. More efficient codes are obtained by allowing C_1 to have reduced distance, and introducing sign changes among the code words in a systematic manner. This systematic approach leads to single-error correcting codes for 3, 4 and 5 information qubits with block lengths of 8, 10 and 11 qubits respectively.Comment: Submitted to Phys. Rev. A. in May 1996. 21 pages, no figures. Further information at http://eve.physics.ox.ac.uk/ASGhome.htm

Security of quantum cryptography using balanced homodyne detection

In this paper we investigate the security of a quantum cryptographic scheme which utilizes balanced homodyne detection and weak coherent pulse (WCP). The performance of the system is mainly characterized by the intensity of the WCP and postselected threshold. Two of the simplest intercept/resend eavesdropping attacks are analyzed. The secure key gain for a given loss is also discussed in terms of the pulse intensity and threshold.Comment: RevTeX4, 8pages, 7 figure

Playing a quantum game with a corrupted source

The quantum advantage arising in a simplified multi-player quantum game, is found to be a disadvantage when the game's qubit-source is corrupted by a noisy "demon". Above a critical value of the corruption-rate, or noise-level, the coherent quantum effects impede the players to such an extent that the optimal choice of game changes from quantum to classical.Comment: This version will appear in PRA (Rapid Comm.