We report on the implementation of Burgers equation as a type-II quantum computation on an NMR quantum information processor. Since the flow field evolving under the Burgers equation develops sharp features over time, this is a better test of liquid state NMR implementations of type-II quantum computers than the previous examples using the diffusion equation. In particular, we show that Fourier approximations used in the encoding step are not the dominant error. Small systematic errors in the collision operator accumulate and swamp all other errors. We propose, and demonstrate, that the accumulation of this error can be avoided to a large extent by replacing the single collision operator with a set of operators with random errors and similar fidelities. Experiments have been implemented on 16 two-qubit sites for eight successive time steps for the Burgers equation.
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) has provided a valuable experimental testbed for quantum information processing (QIP). Here, we briefly review the use of nuclear spins as qubits, and discuss the current status of NMR-QIP. Advances in the techniques available for control are described along with the various implementations of quantum algorithms and quantum simulations that have been performed using NMR. The recent application of NMR control techniques to other quantum computing systems are reviewed before concluding with a description of the efforts currently underway to transition to solid st…
In this essay we discuss the issue of quantum information and recent nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments. We explain why these experiments should be regarded as quantum information processing (QIP) despite the fact that, in present liquid state NMR experiments, no entanglement is found. We comment on how these experiments contribute to the future of QIP and include a brief discussion on the origin of the power of quantum computers.
We construct a local realistic hidden-variable model that describes the states and dynamics of bulk-ensemble NMR information processing up to about 12 nuclear spins. The existence of such a model rules out violation of any Bell inequality, temporal or otherwise, in present high-temperature, liquid-state NMR experiments. The model does not provide an efficient description in that the number of hidden variables grows exponentially with the number of nuclear spins.
Optimal labeling schemes lead to efficient experimental protocols for quantum information processing by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). A systematic approach of finding optimal labeling schemes for a given computation is described here. The scheme is described for both quadrupolar systems and spin-1/2 systems. Finally, one of the optimal labeling scheme has been used to experimentally implement a quantum full-adder in a 4-qubit system by NMR, using the technique of transition selective pulses.
While quantum information processing by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) with small number of qubits is well established, implementation of lengthy computations have proved to be difficult due to decoherence/relaxation. In such circumstances, shallow circuits (circuits using parallel computation) may prove to be realistic. Parity and fanout gates are essential to create shallow circuits. In this article we implement inversion-on-equality gate, followed by parity gate and fanout gate in 3-qubit systems by NMR, using evolution under indirect exchange coupling Hamiltonian.
While Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) techniques are unlikely to lead to a large scale quantum computer they are well suited to investigating basic phenomena and developing new techniques. Indeed it is likely that many existing NMR techniques will find uses in quantum information processing. Here I describe how the composite rotation (composite pulse) method can be used to develop quantum logic gates which are robust against systematic errors.
Experimental realization of quantum information processing in the field of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) has been well established. Implementation of conditional phase shift gate has been a significant step, which has lead to realization of important algorithms such as Grover's search algorithm and quantum Fourier transform. This gate has so far been implemented in NMR by using coupling evolution method. We demonstrate here the implementation of the conditional phase shift gate using transition selective pulses. As an application of the gate, we demonstrate Grover's search algorithm and qua…
The use of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) to carry out quantum information processing (QIP) often requires the preparation, transformation, and detection of pseudopure states. In our previous work, it was shown that the use of pairs of pseudopure states (POPS) as a basis for QIP is very convenient because of the simplicity in experimental execution. It is now further demonstrated that the product of the NMR spectra corresponding to two sets of POPS that share a common pseudopure state has the same peak frequencies as those of the common (single) pseudopure state. Examples of applying two dif…
A three-qubit 13C solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) system for quantum information processing, based on the malonic acid molecule, is used to demonstrate high-fidelity universal quantum control via strongly-modulating radio-frequency pulses. This control is achieved in the strong-coupling regime, in which the timescales of selective qubit addressing and of two-qubit interactions are comparable.
Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) provides an experimental setting to explore physical implementations of quantum information processing (QIP). Here we introduce the basic background for understanding applications of NMR to QIP and explain their current successes, limitations and potential. NMR spectroscopy is well known for its wealth of diverse coherent manipulations of spin dynamics. Ideas and instrumentation from liquid state NMR spectroscopy have been used to experiment with QIP. This approach has carried the field to a complexity of about 10 qubits, a small number for quantum computation …
Theoretical Quantum Information Processing (QIP) has matured from the use of qubits to the use of qudits (systems having states> 2). Where as most of the experimental implementations have been performed using qubits, little experimental work has been carried out using qudits as yet. In this paper we demonstrate experimental realization of a qutrit system by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), utilizing deuterium (spin-1) nuclei partially oriented in liquid crystalline phase. Preparation of pseudopure states and implementation of unitary operations are demonstrated in this single-qutrit system, u…
Hadamard spectroscopy has earlier been used to speed-up multi-dimensional NMR experiments. In this work we speed-up the two-dimensional quantum computing scheme, by using Hadamard spectroscopy in the indirect dimension, resulting in a scheme which is faster and requires the Fourier transformation only in the direct dimension. Two and three qubit quantum gates are implemented with an extra observer qubit. We also use one-dimensional Hadamard spectroscopy for binary information storage by spatial encoding and implementation of a parallel search algorithm.
Quantum computing exploits fundamentally new models of computation based on quantum mechanical properties instead of classical physics, and it is believed that quantum computers are able to dramatically improve computational power for particular tasks. At present, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) has been one of the most successful platforms amongst all current implementations. It has demonstrated universal controls on the largest number of qubits, and many advanced techniques developed in NMR have been adopted to other quantum systems successfully. In this review, we show how NMR quantum proc…
This paper surveys our recent research on quantum information processing by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. We begin with a geometric introduction to the NMR of an ensemble of indistinguishable spins, and then show how this geometric interpretation is contained within an algebra of multispin product operators. This algebra is used throughout the rest of the paper to demonstrate that it provides a facile framework within which to study quantum information processing more generally. The implementation of quantum algorithms by NMR depends upon the availability of special kinds of m…
Quantum ensembles form easily accessible architectures for studying various phenomena in quantum physics, quantum information science, and spectroscopy. Here we review some recent protocols for measurements in quantum ensembles by utilizing ancillary systems. We also illustrate these protocols experimentally via nuclear magnetic resonance techniques. In particular, we shall review noninvasive measurements, extracting expectation values of various operators, characterizations of quantum states, and quantum processes, and finally quantum noise engineering.
Quantum information processing by liquid-state NMR spectroscopy uses pseudo-pure states to mimic the evolution and observations on true pure states. A new method of preparing pseudo-pure states is described, which involves the selection of the spatially labeled states of an ancilla spin with which the spin system of interest is correlated. This permits a general procedure to be given for the preparation of pseudo-pure states on any number of spins, subject to the limitations imposed by the loss of signal from the selected subensemble. The preparation of a single pseudo-pure state is demonstrat…
This thesis addresses the problems of initialization and separability in liquid state NMR based quantum information processors. We prepare pure quantum states lying above the entanglement threshold. Our pure state quantum computer derives its purity from the highly polarized nuclear spin states in the para-hydrogen molecule. The thesis begins with a critique of conventional NMR based quantum information processing outlining the major strengths and weaknesses of the technology. We describe the enhanced magnetic ordering of the nuclear spin states in para-hydrogen and an initialization experimen…
After a general introduction to nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), we give the basics of implementing quantum algorithms. We describe how qubits are realized and controlled with RF pulses, their internal interactions, and gradient fields. A peculiarity of NMR is that the internal interactions (given by the internal Hamiltonian) are always on. We discuss how they can be effectively turned off with the help of a standard NMR method called ``refocusing''. Liquid state NMR experiments are done at room temperature, leading to an extremely mixed (that is, nearly random) initial state. Despite this hi…
NMR quantum information processing studies rely on the reconstruction of the density matrix representing the so-called pseudo-pure states (PPS). An initially pure part of a PPS state undergoes unitary and non-unitary (relaxation) transformations during a computation process, causing a "loss of purity" until the equilibrium is reached. Besides, upon relaxation, the nuclear polarization varies in time, a fact which must be taken into account when comparing density matrices at different instants. Attempting to use time-fixed normalization procedures when relaxation is present, leads to various an…
While a bit is the fundamental unit of binary classical information, a qubit is the fundamental unit of quantum information. In quantum information processing (QIP), it is customary to call the qubits under study as system qubits, and the additional qubits as ancillary qubits. In this thesis, I describe various schemes to exploit the ancillary qubits to efficiently perform many QIP tasks and their experimental demonstrations in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) systems. Particularly, we have showed that, in the presence of sufficient ancillary qubits, it is possible to completely characterize a…
In this article I will describe how NMR techniques may be used to build simple quantum information processing devices, such as small quantum computers, and show how these techniques are related to more conventional NMR experiments.
Quantum Information processing by NMR with small number of qubits is well established. Scaling to higher number of qubits is hindered by two major requirements (i) mutual coupling among qubits and (ii) qubit addressability. It has been demonstrated that mutual coupling can be increased by using residual dipolar couplings among spins by orienting the spin system in a liquid crystalline matrix. In such a case, the heteronuclear spins are weakly coupled but the homonuclear spins become strongly coupled. In such circumstances, the strongly coupled spins can no longer be treated as qubits. However,…
Fifty years of developments in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) have resulted in an unrivaled degree of control of the dynamics of coupled two-level quantum systems. This coherent control of nuclear spin dynamics has recently been taken to a new level, motivated by the interest in quantum information processing. NMR has been the workhorse for the experimental implementation of quantum protocols, allowing exquisite control of systems up to seven qubits in size. Here, we survey and summarize a broad variety of pulse control and tomographic techniques which have been developed for and used in NMR…
The enormous theoretical potential of Quantum Information Processing (QIP) is driving the pursuit for its practical realization by various physical techniques. Currently Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) has been the forerunner by demonstrating a majority of quantum algorithms. In NMR, spin systems consisting of coupled nuclear spins are utilized as qubits. In order to carry out QIP, a spin system has to meet two major requirements: (i) qubit addressability and (ii) mutual coupling among the qubits. It has been demonstrated that the magnitude of the mutual coupling among qubits can be increased…
A quantum information processing device, based on bulk solid state NMR of the quasi-one dimensional material hydroxyapatite, is proposed following the magnetic resonance force microscopy work of Yamamoto et al (quant-ph/0009122). In a macroscopic sample of hydroxyapatite, our solid state NMR model yields a limit of 10^8 qubits imposed by physics, while development of current technological considerations should allow an upper bound in the range of hundreds to thousands of qubits.
High performance quantum information processing requires efficient control of undesired decohering effects, which are present in realistic quantum dynamics. To deal with this issue, a powerful strategy is to employ transitionless quantum driving (TQD), where additional fields are added to speed up the evolution of the quantum system, achieving a desired state in a short time in comparison with the natural decoherence time scales. In this paper, we provide an experimental investigation of the performance of a generalized approach for TQD to implement shortcuts to adiabaticity in nuclear magneti…
The experimental realisation of the basic constituents of quantum information processing devices, namely fault-tolerant quantum logic gates, requires conditional quantum dynamics, in which one subsystem undergoes a coherent evolution that depends on the quantum state of another subsystem. In particular, the subsystem may acquire a conditional phase shift. Here we consider a novel scenario in which this phase is of geometric rather than dynamical origin. As the conditional geometric (Berry) phase depends only on the geometry of the path executed it is resilient to certain types of errors, and o…
An ensemble of nuclear spin-pairs under certain conditions is known to exhibit singlet state life-times much longer than other non-equilibrium states. This property of singlet state can be exploited in quantum information processing for efficient initialization of quantum registers. Here we describe a general method of initialization and experimentally demonstrate it with two-, three-, and four-qubit nuclear spin registers.
Being able to quantify the level of coherent control in a proposed device implementing a quantum information processor (QIP) is an important task for both comparing different devices and assessing a device's prospects with regards to achieving fault-tolerant quantum control. We implement in a liquid-state nuclear magnetic resonance QIP the randomized benchmarking protocol presented by Knill et al (PRA 77: 012307 (2008)). We report an error per randomized $\fracπ{2}$ pulse of $1.3 \pm 0.1 \times 10^{-4}$ with a single qubit QIP and show an experimentally relevant error model where the randomize…
Experimental implementation of a quantum algorithm requires unitary operator decomposition. Here we treat the unitary operator decomposition as an optimization problem and use Genetic Algorithm, a global optimization method inspired by nature's evolutionary process for operator decomposition. As an application, we apply this to NMR Quantum Information Processing and find a probabilistic way of doing universal quantum computation using global hard pulses. We also demonstrate efficient creation of singlet state (as a special case of Bell state) directly from thermal equilibrium using an optimum …
Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) has been widely used in the context of quantum information processing (QIP). However, despite the great similarities between NMR and nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR), no experimental implementation for QIP using NQR has been reported. We describe the implementation of basic quantum gates and their applications on the creation of pseudopure states using linearly polarized radiofrequency pulses under static magnetic field perturbation. The NQR quantum operations were implemented using a single crystal sample of KClO3 and observing 35Cl nuclei, which posses spin…
We introduce a ``Statistical Query Sampling'' model, in which the goal of an algorithm is to produce an element in a hidden set $Ssubseteqbit^n$ with reasonable probability. The algorithm gains information about $S$ through oracle calls (statistical queries), where the algorithm submits a query function $g(cdot)$ and receives an approximation to $Pr_{x in S}[g(x)=1]$. We show how this model is related to NMR quantum computing, in which only statistical properties of an ensemble of quantum systems can be measured, and in particular to the question of whether one can translate standard quantum a…
In this chapter we review the contributions of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance to the study of quantum correlations, including its capabilities to prepare initial states, generate unitary transformations, and characterize the final state. These are the three main demands to implement quantum information processing in a physical system, which NMR offers, nearly to perfection, though for a small number of qubits. Our main discussion will concern liquid samples at room temperature.
This paper describes recent progress using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) as a platform for implementing quantum information processing (QIP) tasks. The basic ideas of NMR QIP are detailed, examining the successes and limitations of liquid and solid state experiments. Finally, a future direction for implementing quantum processors is suggested,utilizing both nuclear and electron spin degrees of freedom.
Estimation of quantum states is one of the most important steps in any quantum information processing experiment. A naive reconstruction of the density matrix from experimental measurements can often give density matrices which are not positive, and hence not physically acceptable. How do we ensure that at all stages of reconstruction, we keep the density matrix positive and normalized? Recently a method has been suggested based on maximum likelihood estimation, wherein the density matrix is guaranteed to be positive definite. We experimentally implement this protocol and demonstrate its utili…
Multiple quantum (MQ) NMR methods \cite{Baum} are applied to the analysis of various problems of quantum information processing. It is shown that the two-spin/two-quantum Hamiltonian \cite{Baum} describing MQ NMR dynamics is related to the flip-flop Hamiltonian of a one-dimensional spin system in the approximation of the nearest neighbor interactions. As a result, it is possible to organize quantum state transfer along a linear chain. MQ NMR experiments are performed on quasi-one-dimensional chains of \BPChem{\^{19}F} nuclei in calcium fluorapatite \BPChem{Ca\_5(PO\_4)\_3F}. Relaxation of the …
Searching for marked items from an unsorted database is an important scientific problem and a benchmark for computing devices as well. Using a 7-qubit liquid NMR quantum computer, we have demonstrated successfully an hybrid quantum fetching algorithm that finds marked items using only a single query. The essential idea is the operation of quantum computers in parallel. We gave the detailed pulse sequence for coherent control of the 7 qubits. The pulse sequence demonstrated here is not only useful for ensemble quantum computation, but also can be regarded as a general purpose control-gate which…
The existence of quantum correlation (as revealed by quantum discord), other than entanglement and its role in quantum-information processing (QIP), is a current subject for discussion. In particular, it has been suggested that this nonclassical correlation may provide computational speedup for some quantum algorithms. In this regard, bulk nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) has been successfully used as a test bench for many QIP implementations, although it has also been continuously criticized for not presenting entanglement in most of the systems used so far. In this paper, we report a theoret…
An extension of the product operator formalism of NMR is introduced, which uses the Hadamard matrix product to describe many simple spin 1/2 relaxation processes. The utility of this formalism is illustrated by deriving NMR gradient-diffusion experiments to simulate several decoherence models of interest in quantum information processing, along with their Lindblad and Kraus representations. Gradient-diffusion experiments are also described for several more complex forms of decoherence, including the well-known collective isotropic model. Finally, it is shown that the Hadamard formalism gives a…
Physical potentials are routinely approximated to harmonic potentials so as to analytically solve the system dynamics. Often it is important to know when a quantum harmonic oscillator (QHO) behaves quantum mechanically and when classically. Recently Su et. al. [Phys. Rev. A {\bf 85}, 052126 (2012)] have theoretically shown that QHO exhibits quantum contextuality (QC) for a certain set of pseudospin observables. In this work, we encode the four eigenstates of a QHO onto four Zeeman product states of a pair of spin-1/2 nuclei. Using the techniques of NMR quantum information processing, we then d…
Methods to control errors will be essential for quantum information processing. It is widely believed that fault-tolerant quantum error correction is the leading contender to achieve this goal. Although the theory of fault-tolerant quantum error correction is very well understood, experimental implementation has been lagging. We study the feasibility of implementing repeated rounds of quantum error correction with refreshed ancillas in solid state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). In particular we study the procedure proposed for extracting entropy that consists of two stages; an error correct…
The Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger (GHZ) effect provides an example of quantum correlations that cannot be explained by classical local hidden variables. This paper reports on the experimental realization of GHZ correlations using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). The NMR experiment differs from the originally proposed GHZ experiment in several ways: it is performed on mixed states rather than pure states; and instead of being widely separated, the spins on which it is performed are all located in the same molecule. As a result, the NMR version of the GHZ experiment cannot entirely rule out class…
Composite pulses, originally developed in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), have found widespread use in experimental quantum information processing (QIP) to reduce the effects of systematic errors. Most pulses used so far have simply been adapted from existing NMR designs, and while techniques have been developed for designing composite pulses with arbitrary precision the results have been quite complicated and have found little application. Here I describe techniques for designing short but effective composite pulses to implement robust NOT gates, bringing together existing insights from NMR…
Quantum control of large spin registers is crucial for many applications ranging from spectroscopy to quantum information. A key factor that determines the efficiency of a register for implementing a given information processing task is its network topology. One particular type, called star-topology, involves a central qubit uniformly interacting with a set of ancillary qubits. A particular advantage of the star-topology quantum registers is in the efficient preparation of large entangled states, called NOON states, and their generalized variants. Thanks to the robust generation of such correl…
Finding control laws (pulse sequences) that can compensate for dispersions in parameters which govern the evolution of a quantum system is an important problem in the fields of coherent spectroscopy, imaging, and quantum information processing. The use of composite pulse techniques for such tasks has a long and widely known history. In this paper, we introduce the method of Fourier synthesis control law design for compensating dispersions in quantum system dynamics. We focus on system models arising in NMR spectroscopy and NMR imaging applications.
Pursuit and Review of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) based Quantum Computing -- Qubit Generation, Spin Purification, Tailored RF Pulses and MRI Sequences for Quantum Computing
We present a protocol for error characterization and its experimental implementation with 4 qubits in liquid state NMR. The method is designed to retrieve information about spatial correlations and scales as $O(n^w)$, where $w$ is the maximum number of qubits that have non-negligible interaction. We discuss the practical aspects regarding accuracy and implementation.
Coherent oscillations between any two levels from four nuclear spin states of I=3/2 have been demonstrated in a nanometre-scale NMR semiconductor device, where nuclear spins are all-electrically controlled. Using this device, we discuss quantum logic operations on two fictitious qubits of the I=3/2 system, and propose a quantum state tomography scheme based on the measurement of longitudinal magnetization, $M_z$.
Quantum information processing is the use of inherently quantum mechanical phenomena to perform information processing tasks that cannot be achieved using conventional classical information technologies. One famous example is quantum computing, which would permit calculations to be performed that are beyond the reach of any conceivable conventional computer. Initially it appeared that actually building a quantum computer would be extremely difficult, but in the last few years there has been an explosion of interest in the use of techniques adapted from conventional liquid state nuclear magneti…
The role of mixed state entanglement in liquid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) quantum computation is not yet well-understood. In particular, despite the success of quantum information processing with NMR, recent work has shown that quantum states used in most of those experiments were not entangled. This is because these states, derived by unitary transforms from the thermal equilibrium state, were too close to the maximally mixed state. We are thus motivated to determine whether a given NMR state is entanglable - that is, does there exist a unitary transform that entangles the state? …
We experimentally demonstrate quantum machine learning using NMR based on a framework of quantum reservoir computing. Reservoir computing is for exploiting natural nonlinear dynamics with large degrees of freedom, which is called a reservoir, for a machine learning purpose. Here we propose a concrete physical implementation of a quantum reservoir using controllable dynamics of a nuclear spin ensemble in a molecular solid. In this implementation, we demonstrate learning of nonlinear functions with binary or continuous variable inputs with low mean squared errors. Our implementation and demonstr…
The Yang-Baxter equation is an important tool in theoretical physics, with many applications in different domains that span from condensed matter to string theory. Recently, the interest on the equation has increased due to its connection to quantum information processing. It has been shown that the Yang-Baxter equation is closely related to quantum entanglement and quantum computation. Therefore, owing to the broad relevance of this equation, besides theoretical studies, it also became significant to pursue its experimental implementation. Here, we show an experimental realization of the Yang…
The error-robust and short composite operations named ConCatenated Composite Pulses (CCCPs), developed as high-precision unitary operations in quantum information processing (QIP), are derived from composite pulses widely employed in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). CCCPs simultaneously compensate for two types of systematic errors, which was not possible with the known composite pulses in NMR. Our experiments demonstrate that CCCPs are powerful and versatile tools not only in QIP but also in NMR.
Application of multiple rounds of Quantum Error Correction (QEC) is an essential milestone towards the construction of scalable quantum information processing devices. However, experimental realizations of it are still in their infancy. The requirements for multiple round QEC are high control fidelity and the ability to extract entropy from ancilla qubits. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) based quantum devices have demonstrated high control fidelity with up to 12 qubits. On the other hand, the major challenge in the NMR QEC experiment is to efficiently supply ancilla qubits in highly pure stat…
Superradiant phase transition (SPT) in thermal equilibrium, as a fundamental concept bridging the statistical physics and electrodynamics, can offer the key resources for quantum information science. Notwithstanding its fundamental and practical significances, equilibrium SPT has never been observed in experiments since the first proposal in the 1970s. Furthermore, the existence of equilibrium SPT in the cavity quantum electrodynamics (QED) systems is still subject of ongoing debates, due to the no-go theorem induced by the so-called A2 term. Based on the platform of nuclear magnetic resonance…
Nuclear spins are promising candidates for quantum information processing because their good isolation from the environment precludes the rapid loss of quantum coherence. Many strategies have been developed to further extend their decoherence times. Some of them make use of decoupling techniques based on the Carr-Purcell and Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill pulse sequences. In many cases, when applied to inhomogeneous samples, they yield a magnetization decay much slower than the Hahn echo. However, we have proved that these decays cannot be associated with longer decoherence times as coherences rema…
