Comparison of mixed quantum states

In this article, we study the problem of comparing mixed quantum states: given $n$ unknown mixed quantum states, can one determine whether they are identical or not with an unambiguous quantum measurement? We first study universal comparison of mixed quantum states, and prove that this task is generally impossible to accomplish. Then, we focus on unambiguous comparison of $n$ mixed quantum states arbitrarily chosen from a set of $k$ mixed quantum states. The condition for the existence of an unambiguous measurement operator which can produce a conclusive result when the unknown states are actually the same and the condition for the existence of an unambiguous measurement operator when the unknown states are actually different are studied independently. We derive a necessary and sufficient condition for the existence of the first measurement operator, and a necessary condition and two sufficient conditions for the second. Furthermore, we find that the sufficiency of the necessary condition for the second measurement operator has simple and interesting dependence on $n$ and $k$. At the end, a unified condition is obtained for the simultaneous existence of these two unambiguous measurement operators.Comment: 9 page

Random unitary dynamics of quantum networks

We investigate the asymptotic dynamics of quantum networks under repeated applications of random unitary operations. It is shown that in the asymptotic limit of large numbers of iterations this dynamics is generally governed by a typically low dimensional attractor space. This space is determined completely by the unitary operations involved and it is independent of the probabilities with which these unitary operations are applied. Based on this general feature analytical results are presented for the asymptotic dynamics of arbitrarily large cyclic qubit networks whose nodes are coupled by randomly applied controlled-NOT operations.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure

Perfect transfer of multiple excitations in quantum networks

We present a general formalism to the problem of perfect state-transfer (PST), where the state involves multiple excitations of the quantum network. A key feature of our formalism is that it allows for inclusion of nontrivial interactions between the excitations. Hence, it is perfectly suited to addressing the problem of PST in the context of various types of physical realizations. The general formalism is also flexible enough to account for situations where multiple excitations are "focused" onto the same site.Comment: close to the version published in Phys. Rev. A. In version 2, a typo has been corrected in Sec. III

Complex chaos in conditional qubit dynamics and purification protocols

Selection of an ensemble of equally prepared quantum systems, based on measurements on it, is a basic step in quantum state purification. For an ensemble of single qubits, iterative application of selective dynamics has been shown to lead to complex chaos, which is a novel form of quantum chaos with true sensitivity to the initial conditions. The Julia set of initial valuse with no convergence shows a complicated structre on the complex plane. The shape of the Julia set varies with the parameter of the dynamics. We present here results for the two qubit case demonstrating how a purification process can be destroyed with chaotic oscillations

Complex chaos in the conditional dynamics of qubits

We analyze the consequences of iterative measurement-induced nonlinearity on the dynamical behavior of qubits. We present a one-qubit scheme where the equation governing the time evolution is a complex-valued nonlinear map with one complex parameter. In contrast to the usual notion of quantum chaos, exponential sensitivity to the initial state occurs here. We calculate analytically the Lyapunov exponent based on the overlap of quantum states, and find that it is positive. We present a few illustrative examples of the emerging dynamics.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure