Instruction Set Architectures for Quantum Processing Units

Progress in quantum computing hardware raises questions about how these devices can be controlled, programmed, and integrated with existing computational workflows. We briefly describe several prominent quantum computational models, their associated quantum processing units (QPUs), and the adoption of these devices as accelerators within high-performance computing systems. Emphasizing the interface to the QPU, we analyze instruction set architectures based on reduced and complex instruction sets, i.e., RISC and CISC architectures. We clarify the role of conventional constraints on memory addressing and instruction widths within the quantum computing context. Finally, we examine existing quantum computing platforms, including the D-Wave 2000Q and IBM Quantum Experience, within the context of future ISA development and HPC needs.Comment: To be published in the proceedings in the International Super Computing Conference 2017 publicatio

An integrated approach to system design, reliability, and diagnosis

The requirement for ultradependability of computer systems in future avionics and space applications necessitates a top-down, integrated systems engineering approach for design, implementation, testing, and operation. The functional analyses of hardware and software systems must be combined by models that are flexible enough to represent their interactions and behavior. The information contained in these models must be accessible throughout all phases of the system life cycle in order to maintain consistency and accuracy in design and operational decisions. One approach being taken by researchers at Ames Research Center is the creation of an object-oriented environment that integrates information about system components required in the reliability evaluation with behavioral information useful for diagnostic algorithms. Procedures have been developed at Ames that perform reliability evaluations during design and failure diagnoses during system operation. These procedures utilize information from a central source, structured as object-oriented fault trees. Fault trees were selected because they are a flexible model widely used in aerospace applications and because they give a concise, structured representation of system behavior. The utility of this integrated environment for aerospace applications in light of our experiences during its development and use is described. The techniques for reliability evaluation and failure diagnosis are discussed, and current extensions of the environment and areas requiring further development are summarized

A diagnosis system using object-oriented fault tree models

Spaceborne computing systems must provide reliable, continuous operation for extended periods. Due to weight, power, and volume constraints, these systems must manage resources very effectively. A fault diagnosis algorithm is described which enables fast and flexible diagnoses in the dynamic distributed computing environments planned for future space missions. The algorithm uses a knowledge base that is easily changed and updated to reflect current system status. Augmented fault trees represented in an object-oriented form provide deep system knowledge that is easy to access and revise as a system changes. Given such a fault tree, a set of failure events that have occurred, and a set of failure events that have not occurred, this diagnosis system uses forward and backward chaining to propagate causal and temporal information about other failure events in the system being diagnosed. Once the system has established temporal and causal constraints, it reasons backward from heuristically selected failure events to find a set of basic failure events which are a likely cause of the occurrence of the top failure event in the fault tree. The diagnosis system has been implemented in common LISP using Flavors

Thermal Transients in District Heating Systems

Heat fluxes in a district heating pipeline systems need to be controlled on the scale from minutes to an hour to adjust to evolving demand. There are two principal ways to control the heat flux - keep temperature fixed but adjust velocity of the carrier (typically water) or keep the velocity flow steady but then adjust temperature at the heat producing source (heat plant). We study the latter scenario, commonly used for operations in Russia and Nordic countries, and analyze dynamics of the heat front as it propagates through the system. Steady velocity flows in the district heating pipelines are typically turbulent and incompressible. Changes in the heat, on either consumption or production sides, lead to slow transients which last from tens of minutes to hours. We classify relevant physical phenomena in a single pipe, e.g. turbulent spread of the turbulent front. We then explain how to describe dynamics of temperature and heat flux evolution over a network efficiently and illustrate the network solution on a simple example involving one producer and one consumer of heat connected by "hot" and "cold" pipes. We conclude the manuscript motivating future research directions.Comment: 31 pages, 7 figure