Robust concurrent remote entanglement between two superconducting qubits

Entangling two remote quantum systems which never interact directly is an essential primitive in quantum information science and forms the basis for the modular architecture of quantum computing. When protocols to generate these remote entangled pairs rely on using traveling single photon states as carriers of quantum information, they can be made robust to photon losses, unlike schemes that rely on continuous variable states. However, efficiently detecting single photons is challenging in the domain of superconducting quantum circuits because of the low energy of microwave quanta. Here, we report the realization of a robust form of concurrent remote entanglement based on a novel microwave photon detector implemented in the superconducting circuit quantum electrodynamics (cQED) platform of quantum information. Remote entangled pairs with a fidelity of $0.57\pm0.01$ are generated at $200$ Hz. Our experiment opens the way for the implementation of the modular architecture of quantum computation with superconducting qubits.Comment: Main paper: 7 pages, 4 figures; Appendices: 14 pages, 9 figure

Pair-cat codes: autonomous error-correction with low-order nonlinearity

We introduce a driven-dissipative two-mode bosonic system whose reservoir causes simultaneous loss of two photons in each mode and whose steady states are superpositions of pair-coherent/Barut-Girardello coherent states. We show how quantum information encoded in a steady-state subspace of this system is exponentially immune to phase drifts (cavity dephasing) in both modes. Additionally, it is possible to protect information from arbitrary photon loss in either (but not simultaneously both) of the modes by continuously monitoring the difference between the expected photon numbers of the logical states. Despite employing more resources, the two-mode scheme enjoys two advantages over its one-mode cat-qubit counterpart with regards to implementation using current circuit QED technology. First, monitoring the photon number difference can be done without turning off the currently implementable dissipative stabilizing process. Second, a lower average photon number per mode is required to enjoy a level of protection at least as good as that of the cat-codes. We discuss circuit QED proposals to stabilize the code states, perform gates, and protect against photon loss via either active syndrome measurement or an autonomous procedure. We introduce quasiprobability distributions allowing us to represent two-mode states of fixed photon number difference in a two-dimensional complex plane, instead of the full four-dimensional two-mode phase space. The two-mode codes are generalized to multiple modes in an extension of the stabilizer formalism to non-diagonalizable stabilizers. The $M$-mode codes can protect against either arbitrary photon losses in up to $M-1$ modes or arbitrary losses and gains in any one mode.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figures, 2 tables; added a numerical compariso

Uncertainty in Damage Assessment and Remaining Life Prediction of Engineering Materials Used In Petrochemical Industry

In this paper creep damage assessment of about 11 years’ service exposed HP-40 grade of steel used in hydrogen reformer of a petrochemical industry has been carried out in terms of a discontinuous Markov process. Experimentally determined conventional creep data under identical testing condition were used in the present investigation. Scatter and damage accumulation due to creep deformation were evaluated through microstructural assessment using light optical microscope and scanning electron microscope. Quantification of creep damage was made from replicated creep data in terms of two damage parameters A and A*. Statistical analysis of void area fraction has been carried out extensively for the both top and bottom portions of the reformer tube at 870 o C in the stress range of 52-68 MPa. In addition, the proposed probabilistic model has been compared with the Kachanav’s Continuum Damage Mechanics (CDM) model. Both the approaches displayed quantitative experimental support. A residual life of > 10 years is estimated at 870 degree C / operating stress. For 55 years’ service exposed Catalytic Cold Cracking (CCU) reactor vessel and Feed Processing Unit (FPU) distillation column materials of a petrochemical industry remnant life assessment studies were estimated by incorporating the uncertainty involved in calculation of LMP (Larson Miller Parameter) values and from extrapolation of stress vs. LMP plot. Variability of normalized creep damage for reactor and column materials is well approximated with the aid of Weibull distribution. As expected, it is observed that the distributions shift towards the higher range of damage with increase in service exposure time

Powersharing and Democratic Survival

Democracy is often fragile, especially in states that have recently experienced civil conflict. To protect emerging democracies, many scholars and practitioners recommend political powersharing institutions. Yet there is little empirical research on whether powersharing promotes democratic survival, and some concern that it can limit electoral accountability. To fill this gap, we differentiate between inclusive, dispersive, and constraining powersharing and analyze their effects on democratic survival using a new global dataset. We find sharp distinctions across types of powersharing and political context. Inclusive powersharing, such as ethnic quotas, promotes democratic survival only in post-conflict settings. In contrast, dispersive institutions such as federalism destabilize post-conflict democracies. Only constraining powersharing consistently facilitates democratic survival in societies both with and without recent conflict. Our results suggest that institution-builders and international organizations should prioritize institutions that constrain leaders, including independent judiciaries, civilian control of the armed forces, and constitutional protections of individual and group rights