Papers for

quantum hardware engineers

Papers whose findings have a practical use for this group, as judged from the abstract. Open a paper to read what it means in practice.

Learning sparse control patterns lowers cost of quantum state preparation

Reducing the Cost of Qudit State Preparation by Learning a Sparse Structure for SNAP Gates

Abstract: Preparing quantum states in bosonic qudits with SNAP--Displacement sequences requires both optimizing the gate parameters and deciding which Fock levels should be controlled by each SNAP gate. A fully parameterized ansatz assigns an independent phase to every Fock level in every gate, leading to a number of phases that grows steeply. This constitutes a problem for short to medium term systems as controlling many phases requires complex control pulses which are subject to increased control errors. Previous work reduced this cost by restricting the trainable phases to predefined sparse patterns, such as a diagonal or a grid, which however may not be optimal for a specific target state. In this work, we address this limitation by introducing a method that learns which phases are needed together with their values, using a differentiable mask. A sparsity penalty encourages the removal of unnecessary phases, while temperature annealing gradually turns the masks into binary decisions. We compare the proposed method with fully parameterized and predefined sparse ansatzes on Fourier and Haar-random target states. The evaluation considers both the minimum number of phases required to reach different infidelity thresholds and the overall trade-off between fidelity and phases required, measured through Pareto frontiers and hypervolume. The results show that learning the location of the phases together with their values provides competitive or improved fidelity--resource trade-offs, although the advantage depends on the target state and qudit dimension.

Thu 15 OctMachine Learning
The gist
Preparing complex quantum states in bosonic qudits usually requires many control settings, which can be expensive and error-prone. The authors show a method that learns which control phases are actually needed rather than using fixed patterns, reducing the effort and potential errors. They use a technique that encourages simpler control patterns by gradually selecting which phases to keep. Their results demonstrate that this learning approach can match or improve performance compared to both fully flexible and predefined sparse controls, although the benefit varies with the target state and system size.
Open → 2610.21557v1

Quantum circuits achieve exact Ramanujan expansion with few resources

Ramanujan quantum expanders from the Weil representation

Abstract: For every odd prime power $q$ and $D=q+1$, we construct an infinite family of Ramanujan quantum expanders of degree $D$. The construction transfers Morgenstern's Ramanujan Cayley graphs on $\operatorname{PSL}_2(\mathbb{F}_{p})$ for $p$ which is an even power of $q$, through the odd irreducible subrepresentation of the Weil representation of $\operatorname{SL}_2(\mathbb{F}_{p})$. For a quantum expander of dimension $N$, our implementation uses $O(\log^2 N)$ elementary gates, and $O(\log N)$ ancilla qudits, using a fixed finite gate set depending on $q$. An advantage compared to the previous work of Iyer, Jain, Jordan, and Somma (FOCS 2026) is that assuming the quantum circuit is implemented exactly, we satisfy the $2\sqrt{D-1}/D$ singular value bound exactly without any additive error.

Tue 29 SeptComputational Complexity
The gist
Building efficient quantum networks requires special structures called quantum expanders. This paper shows how to create particularly good quantum expanders, called Ramanujan quantum expanders, using a mathematical construction based on the Weil representation. The authors’ method uses relatively few quantum resources and matches an important quality bound exactly, which was not achieved in previous work. This advancement could help design better quantum communication and computing systems.
Open → 2609.38075v1

Dissipative quantum reservoirs model complex quantum system responses

Digital Twin Modeling of Quantum Dynamical Systems: Dissipative Quantum Reservoir Computing

Abstract: Modeling the response of driven many-body quantum systems from input--output data is difficult: the dynamics are nonlinear, history dependent, and expensive to simulate as system size grows. A paradigmatic case is High-Harmonic Generation~(HHG), where a strong field drives a medium to emit radiation that is highly sensitive to the drive and encodes long-range temporal correlations. We introduce a dissipative quantum reservoir computing~(DQRC) framework that builds a digital twin of such a system, learning its input--output map directly from data while the reservoir---itself a small open quantum system---stays fixed and only a classical readout is trained. We show that a minimal single-qubit reservoir reproduces the HHG response of a substantially larger Ising spin chain, and on a representative benchmark matches and on several metrics surpasses previously reported temporal convolutional and Kolmogorov--Arnold-network models, while using a simpler, physically realizable system. A single fixed reservoir further generalizes across a broad range of drives, indicating that it learns a shared physical response structure rather than memorizing trajectories. These results establish dissipative quantum reservoirs as compact, physically grounded digital twins for nonlinear, memory-dependent quantum dynamics. Code is available at \href{https://github.com/AI-and-Quantum-Computing/DQuRC}{https://github.com/AI-and-Quantum-Computing/DQuRC}.

Tue 29 SeptArtificial Intelligence
The gist
Modeling how complex quantum systems react to inputs is very hard because their behavior depends on past states and involves complicated interactions. The authors present a method that uses a small quantum system, called a dissipative quantum reservoir, to learn how a bigger quantum system behaves just by looking at input and output data. This small quantum system does not change internally; only a classical part that reads its output is trained. Their approach performs as well or better than existing machine learning models on a standard challenge involving high-harmonic generation, using a simpler and physically realistic setup.
Open → 2609.36901v1

Quantum fidelity calibration improves single-circuit QGAN image generation

Quantum Fidelity Landscape-Guided Prior Calibration for Single-Circuit QGAN Image Generation

Abstract: Quantum Generative Adversarial Networks (QGANs) have emerged as representative generative models in the Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum (NISQ) era and have attracted increasing attention in quantum machine learning. However, most existing QGAN methods rely on patch-based decomposition strategies, which weaken the global consistency of generated images and increase quantum resource overhead. In this work, we investigate a simpler approach: pixel-level, end-to-end image generation using a single-quantum-circuit QGAN. By analyzing the structural matching relationship between the quantum prior and the target data distribution in Hilbert space, we provide a new theoretical perspective for understanding the training behavior of naive end-to-end QGANs. Specifically, we introduce the Quantum Fidelity Landscape (QFL), defined as the pairwise-fidelity structure induced by an ensemble of quantum states and preserved under shared unitary transformations of the quantum generation process. We show that, under a fixed Lipschitz readout, this invariant imposes a one-sided bound on decoded sample separation, motivating calibration of the prior-induced QFL before adversarial training. To validate this theoretical insight, we propose BasicQGAN, a QGAN framework incorporating quantum prior calibration. Before adversarial optimization, BasicQGAN aligns the prior-induced QFL with the data-induced QFL. Experimental results on small-scale grayscale image datasets show that BasicQGAN achieves stable and effective end-to-end pixel-level image generation while requiring fewer qubits and trainable parameters than representative patch-based quantum generators. Furthermore, experiments with different initial quantum-state ensembles show that QFL-calibrated ensembles achieve better generative performance.

Tue 29 SeptComputer Vision and Pattern Recognition
The gist
Generating images directly on quantum computers is challenging due to noise and complexity. The authors study a method to make quantum image generation more stable and efficient by adjusting the quantum starting point before training. They introduce a way to measure how similar quantum states are to guide this adjustment, which helps produce better images using fewer quantum resources. Their approach, called BasicQGAN, works well on simple grayscale images and uses less computational power than earlier methods.
Open → 2609.36702v1

Optimal ways to prepare quantum ground states with fewer queries

Optimal Query Complexity for Ground-State Preparation

Abstract: We determine the optimal query complexity of ground-state preparation to trace-distance error $\varepsilon$ when an energy threshold in the spectral gap is known. Let $U_H$ be an $α$-block-encoding of a Hamiltonian with unique ground state $|ψ_0\rangle$, and suppose $|\langleψ_0|U_I|0\rangle|\geγ$ for a state-preparation oracle $U_I$. The threshold lies at least $Δ/2$ above the ground-state energy and at least $Δ/2$ below every excited-state energy. We give two algorithms that prepare a state within trace distance $\varepsilon$ of the ground state. One uses $O((α/Δ)(γ^{-1}+\log(1/\varepsilon)))$ calls to $U_H$ in expectation; the other uses $O((α/(γΔ))\log(1/\varepsilon))$ calls to $U_H$ in the worst case. We prove a lower bound matching the expected query count; the corresponding worst-case lower bound follows from Somma and de Wolf [SdW26]. The respective bounds on calls to $U_I$ are $O(1/γ)$ in expectation and $O(γ^{-1}\log(1/\varepsilon))$ in the worst case. On $(N+1)$-dimensional systems, these $U_I$ bounds are also optimal when the expected or worst-case count of $U_H$ calls, respectively, is $o((α/Δ)\sqrt N)$. Both algorithms use a constant-accuracy spectral filter to construct a purifier, which we then sequentially compose during amplitude amplification to prepare a state with constant overlap with the ground state. The expected-query algorithm repeats the preparation followed by one high-accuracy spectral filter until success. The worst-case algorithm uses filters of increasing accuracy and limits the total number of queries.

Mon 28 SeptComputational ComplexityData Structures and Algorithms
The gist
Preparing the lowest energy state, or ground state, of a quantum system is important for quantum computing and simulations. This paper finds the best possible number of times you need to use certain quantum operations (queries) to successfully prepare this ground state within a desired accuracy. The authors provide two methods: one that is efficient on average and one that guarantees performance in the worst case. They also prove that no algorithm can use fewer queries than the one they present, making their methods optimal for this task.
Open → 2609.35668v1

Canonical logical bases improve qubit error-correcting code efficiency

Low-Weight Canonical Logical Bases from Pair-Partition Codes

Abstract: We construct complete canonical logical bases for qubit CSS codes by assigning quaternary coefficients to binary circulant permutation matrix pair-partition (CPM-PP) checks, constructing and normalizing logical representatives, and expanding the result into binary matrices. When the two check systems have invertible submatrices on disjoint column sets, cofactor representatives are canonically paired by the inverse of a single pairing polynomial. The resulting pairs span the entire logical space. When the pairing polynomial is a cyclic-shift monomial with coefficient one, normalization preserves the binary weights of the representatives. We state the construction for general block dimensions and CPM size, work through a corresponding example, and report the parameters, check ranks, and basis weights of seven binary codes. Representative examples have parameters $[[320,80,14]]$, $[[448,112,18]]$, and $[[2048,512,24]]$. All three have maximum check weight 10 on both the X and Z sides. Their canonical logical representatives have binary weights 25, 27, and 27, respectively, on both the X and Z sides.

Mon 28 SeptInformation Theory
The gist
Building reliable quantum computers requires ways to protect qubits from errors. This paper shows how to create special sets of rules, called logical bases, that represent the information in certain quantum error-correcting codes. These bases are designed to be efficient by keeping the number of qubits involved in each rule low, making error correction simpler. The authors provide a general construction method, examples with real parameters, and demonstrate how their approach keeps the rules’ complexity manageable.
Open → 2609.35601v1

Quantum state fidelity estimated with fewer measurements than before

Sublinear Copies Suffice for Fidelity Estimation with Pauli Measurements

Abstract: We present a protocol that estimates the quantum fidelity, up to precision $\varepsilon$, between a known target state and unknown lab-prepared state with sublinear, $o(d^{0.9908}/\varepsilon^2)$, number of Pauli basis measurements.

Mon 28 SeptComputational Complexity
The gist
Measuring how close a lab-made quantum state is to the ideal target usually requires many measurements. The authors show a way to estimate this closeness, called fidelity, more efficiently using much fewer Pauli measurements than previously known. Their method can work well even when measurement numbers grow slower than the size of the quantum system. This helps make checking quantum devices faster and less resource-intensive.
Open → 2609.35547v1

Complexity varies in compiling Clifford operations for quantum circuits

Computational Complexity of Clifford Template Compilation: Are Quantum Computers Useful for Compiling Quantum Circuits?

Abstract: A Clifford template is a finite ordered family of repeatable Clifford operations, and an instantiation specifies how many times each operation is applied. The Clifford template compilation problem asks how to choose these repetition numbers so that the template realizes a target transformation of Pauli operators. This problem arises, for example, when searching for logical operations in quantum error correction using only Clifford operations permitted by physical or fault-tolerance constraints. Although forward Clifford dynamics is efficiently classically simulable, this inverse problem has sharp complexity transitions. For commuting templates with unrestricted integer exponents, feasibility lies in $\mathrm{NP}\cap\mathrm{BQP}$ and a constructive quantum algorithm returns a particular solution together with the full exponent-relation lattice; already at $k=1$, recovering the repetition number contains finite-field discrete logarithm over $\mathbb{F}_{2^r}^{\times}$. In general, restricting every exponent to $\{0,1\}$ removes the Abelian-group closure and makes feasibility NP-complete for variable $k$, even for exactly commuting CNOT-only operations and X-type Paulis. For commuting self-inverse Clifford actions, both binary feasibility and recovery of one solution are classically polynomial-time solvable, but imposing a bound on the total repetition count is NP-complete, even for CNOT-only operations. These results reveal a rich complexity landscape within Clifford template compilation, spanning classically tractable cases, problems admitting quantum polynomial-time algorithms, and NP-complete variants.

Mon 28 SeptComputational Complexity
The gist
The paper studies how hard it is to figure out the right number of times to repeat certain quantum operations called Clifford operations to get a desired effect. While some forward quantum operations are easy to simulate, solving the reverse problem can be very complicated, even impossible to do quickly in some cases. The authors show that some versions of this problem can be solved by classical or quantum computers efficiently, but others are proven to be computationally hard. Their work maps out which cases are easy and which are hard when trying to compile these quantum operations.
Open → 2609.35239v1

Anticoncentration bounds support quantum advantage in boson sampling

Anticoncentration of Complex Gaussian Hafnians

Abstract: Let $G_{2n}$ be a complex symmetric random matrix whose entries above the diagonal are independent standard circular complex Gaussians, and let $H_n=\operatorname{haf}(G_{2n})$. We prove the uniform shifted anticoncentration bound $$ \Pr\!\left( \left| \frac{H_n}{\sqrt{(2n-1)!!}}-z \right| \le \varepsilon \right) \le 2\sqrt{\frac nπ}\,\varepsilon^2 $$ for every $z\in\mathbb C$ and $\varepsilon>0$. This establishes a local anticoncentration property that supports hardness arguments for quantum advantage in Gaussian boson sampling.

Mon 28 SeptComputational Complexity
The gist
This paper proves a mathematical bound that shows a certain random number associated with complex Gaussian matrices does not cluster too closely around any fixed point. The authors focus on the hafnian, a special function important in quantum physics problems like Gaussian boson sampling. Their result ensures that the hafnian values spread out enough, which is important to support the idea that some quantum computations are hard for classical computers to simulate. This finding helps strengthen the theoretical foundation behind claims of quantum advantage in specific quantum experiments.
Open → 2609.35019v1

Simulation based method infers quantum system parameters efficiently

Simulation-Based Quantum System Inference with Neural Posterior Estimation

Abstract: Models of quantum systems faithfully map system parameters to observations, but the inverse problem of parameter inference from measurement data presents a fundamental challenge: computationally intractable likelihoods due to an exponentially large Hilbert space. Here, we introduce simulation-based quantum system inference, a unified, likelihood-free framework that learns parameter posteriors directly from classical simulation data. The central idea is to pair polynomial-cost classical simulators, such as Pauli propagation and tensor networks, with normalizing flows or other neural density estimators for accurate, reusable inference. A single model, trained once, maps any new measurement record to its posterior in one forward pass---turning per-experiment inference into a fixed, up-front cost. We numerically demonstrate the framework's versatility across Pauli noise learning, quantum error mitigation, quantum state tomography, and Hamiltonian learning, with examples involving 81-qubit shallow circuits and 735-parameter inference. In each case, the approach yields accurate estimates of identifiable parameters, while posterior uncertainty provides additional diagnostics of non-identifiability and indicates where further characterization is needed. Our framework reduces data-acquisition requirements in quantum experiments and accelerates parameter inference, providing a practical route to characterizing and improving large-scale quantum systems.

Mon 28 SeptMachine Learning
The gist
Understanding the inner details of quantum systems from what we can measure is very hard because the math gets extremely complex. The authors present a new way to learn about these details by training a machine learning model on simulated quantum data. Once trained, this model can quickly estimate the likely values of the system's parameters from new measurements, without needing heavy computations each time. This method works for various quantum tasks and helps scientists characterize large quantum systems more easily and with less data.
Open → 2609.34995v1

Information leakage controls privacy in multi-user quantum cloud systems

Coherence Rather Than Error Rate Governs Privacy in Multi-Tenant Quantum Computing

Abstract: Multi-tenant computing enables providers of commercial cloud quantum processors to rent disjoint sectors of a device to independent users. Average gate error, which cloud quantum computing providers report, does not determine how much one tenant learns about another. We propose an information-theoretic notion of information leakage across co-tenancy boundaries stemming from quantum state distinguishability. We measure this leakage on commercially-available 156-qubit (IBM Kingston) and 20-qubit (IQM Garnet) devices. Boundaries with identical benchmarked error can offer significantly different amount of information leakage because standard reported measures of error are blind to coherent-versus-stochastic nature of the error while the proposed notion of information leakage is not. A uniform Pauli randomisation implemented over the victim's whole register is used as a defence mechanism to reduce the information leakage to zero. The defence theoretically does not incur a fidelity cost, but the experiments show a non-trivial degradation caused by accumulation of errors. We provide a specific call-for-action to the providers of quantum cloud computing to report information leakage in addition to standard error rates in their device datasheet to enable users to compute privacy and security risks prior to engagement with the device.

Mon 28 SeptCryptography and Security
The gist
When multiple users share a quantum computer hosted in the cloud, they expect their computations to stay private. The usual way providers report errors in these devices doesn't show how much information one user might accidentally learn about another. The authors show that the type of errors, especially coherent errors, matter more for privacy than just the average error rate. They measured this leakage on real quantum devices and found it varies even for similar error rates. They also demonstrate a way to reduce this leakage by randomizing the victim user's quantum state, though this method can introduce other errors in practice.
Open → 2609.34411v1

Quantum compiler boosts chiplet simulations of qubit interactions

QBX: A Compiler for 2-local Qubit Hamiltonian Simulation on Quantum Chiplets

Abstract: 2-local qubit Hamiltonian simulation, a fundamental task in quantum computing, is widely applied in various applications. This paper presents QBX, the first quantum compiler designed for 2-local qubit Hamiltonian simulation on quantum chiplet architectures. Existing general-purpose quantum compilers for chiplet architectures target quantum programs at the gate level and miss optimizations requiring high-level semantics of Hamiltonian simulation. Conversely, existing domain-specific compilers for Hamiltonian simulation are designed for monolithic architectures, and their limited scalability and inability to adapt to the heterogeneity of chiplet architectures lead to sub-optimal circuit outputs. QBX implements a scalable hierarchical approach to reduce both the amount and distance of cross-chiplet communications. It integrates the highway mechanism, a chiplet-oriented solution for efficient long-range qubit communication, to diminish cross-chiplet interaction costs. Furthermore, QBX efficiently aggregates 2-local Pauli strings into multi-target controlled gates, harnessing highways for deep optimization. Our evaluations show that QBX markedly outperforms both general-purpose and domain-specific compilers in circuit depth and operation count, while scaling to much larger 2-local Hamiltonian simulations.

Sun 27 SeptHardware Architecture
The gist
Simulating interactions between pairs of quantum bits (qubits) is important for many quantum computing tasks. The authors created QBX, a new compiler that makes these simulations work better when qubits are spread across multiple small quantum chips, called chiplets. QBX organizes the simulation steps to reduce communication between chiplets, which is often slow and costly. It also groups certain operations to use special communication pathways for faster processing. This results in shorter and more efficient quantum programs compared to existing compilers.
Open → 2609.33997v1

Quantum state learning improves fidelity using terminal-register certification

Terminal-Register Certification for Finite-Measurement Learning of Multiscale Quantum States

Abstract: Structured quantum-state learning not only depends on an expressive ansatz but also on an operational certificate that stays meaningful with finite measurements and imperfect implementation. We study pure one dimensional states learning by an inverse binary multiscale entanglement renormalization ansatz (MERA). In the learning procedure, the qubits removed during coarse graining are controlled coherently and measured together at the terminal register. We confirm that an ideal sequential and terminal measurement schedule delivers the same complete bit string distribution under matched causal operations, while normalized postselection can amplify perturbations inversely with prefix acceptance. A noise aware theorem introduces an individual calibrated total variation implementation budget to the finite shot certificate. The protocol is estimated on an open boundary transverse field Ising ground state. A frozen 8-qubit schedule using $560$ million simulated training measurements per run achieves fidelity above $0.99$ in all $60$ held-out runs, with a mean fidelity of $0.996886$. 1080 circuit-noise cells and 6480 confidence-coverage rows are covered by fixed-circuit robustness validation without a locked soundness violation. We then address architectural fairness at $n=16$ using three new studies. In a 120-run exact-gradient multistart diagnostic, MERA has higher fidelity in 58/60 paired restarts and lower long-range error in 60/60, although no run met the prespecified stationarity criterion. Finally, a causal cone-complete, parameter matched local circuit achieves $2.62\times$ greater aggregate gate exposure yet loses all 30 paired comparisons in fidelity, long-range error, energy, and entropy.

Sun 27 SeptMachine Learning
The gist
Quantum computers rely on learning the state of qubits, but measuring them accurately with limited attempts is hard. The authors show a method using a special measurement schedule that keeps information complete while controlling errors. They tested this on a simulated quantum system and achieved very high accuracy. Their work also compares strategies for scaling up the method to larger qubit systems, showing some approaches work better than others.
Open → 2609.33567v1

Entangled qubits may suffer strong joint noise challenging quantum computers

The Fully Depolarizing Noise Conjecture for Entangled Physical States: A Twenty-Year Perspective

Abstract: In this paper I revisit my 2006 conjecture on correlated errors in entangled physical qubits, originally proposed as a potential obstruction to quantum fault tolerance. The conjecture asserts that, in any physical implementation of a quantum computer, the effective noise channel acting on entangled physical qubits contains a joint fully depolarizing component, with a rate comparable to that of two-qubit gate errors. This hypothesized structural constraint goes beyond standard noise models and, if valid, would pose a significant challenge to scalable quantum fault tolerance. The conjecture remains open, but recent advances in experimental quantum computing bring it within reach of empirical testing on current devices. I also discuss two related directions in my critical study of quantum computation: the role of noise sensitivity and computational complexity in noisy intermediate-scale quantum systems, and the statistical analysis of experimental claims of quantum advantage. Finally, since this paper is written for a volume honoring Yuri Gurevich, I include some reflections on the ways in which my scientific and personal trajectory became intertwined with Yuri's.

Sun 27 SeptComputational Complexity
The gist
Quantum computers rely on delicate qubits that can be linked together in a process called entanglement. The author revisits a long-standing idea that in real quantum devices, the noise affecting these linked qubits might be much stronger and more intertwined than usually assumed. This extra noise, called a fully depolarizing component, could make it much harder to build large-scale, reliable quantum computers. While the idea is still unproven, new experiments could soon test it. The paper also discusses related topics about how noise impacts the performance of near-term quantum devices and how to judge claims of quantum advantage.
Open → 2609.33508v1

Quantum software components unify multiple frameworks and engines

NxM-Version Programming for Quantum Software: High-Level Components across Frameworks and Engines

Abstract: Quantum computing has in recent years evolved from a purely theoretical field to an active area in both academia and industry. As a result, Quantum Software Engineering has emerged as an area that aims to organize the process of building, testing, and running quantum software. However, writing quantum software still requires programming with quantum gates and qubits, as well as knowledge specific to quantum software frameworks such as Qiskit, Cirq, Qrisp, pyQuil and PennyLane, each of which reaches quantum hardware through its own toolchain. We present Quanifi, which packages the high-level routines of these frameworks as components on the Apache NiFi dataflow canvas. The components exchange circuits as OpenQASM 2.0, so a circuit built by one framework can be executed by another. This allows for two types of redundancy: several frameworks implement the same algorithm, and several engines (simulators or real hardware) execute the same circuit. We describe N$\times$M program execution, which crosses the two: a single NiFi flow runs each of the $N$ implementations on each of the $M$ engines, and because every result is labelled with its implementation and its engine, a disagreement can be linked to an implementation, to an engine, or to a single implementation-engine pair. We ran Grover's algorithm built by three frameworks on three quantum computers from IBM, IQM and Quantum Inspire, and a matrix of three adder builders on one IQM device reached through two routes. N$\times$M execution helped us discover three real defects: an incorrect gate-set declaration in the Quantum Inspire adapter, execution consistent with negated $R_x$ angles on Tuna-17, and circuit modification through Open Quantum. The latter two returned wrong answers without reporting an error. We reported all three defects and Open Quantum's provider confirmed and fixed its QASM parsing defect.

Sun 27 SeptSoftware Engineering
The gist
Quantum computing software is complicated because different tools use their own languages and methods to run programs on quantum computers. The authors developed Quanifi, a system that lets many different quantum programming tools work together and run programs across various quantum computers or simulators. By running the same quantum program across multiple tools and devices, Quanifi can spot errors in either the software or the hardware. The authors tested this approach with known algorithms and discovered real problems that they helped get fixed.
Open → 2609.33255v1

Algorithmic traces improve language models in quantum circuit synthesis

AG-CoT: Verified Algorithmic Traces for LLM Program Synthesis on Clifford Circuits

Abstract: Scientific code generation can produce executable programs that fail to compute the intended scientific object. We study this problem in language-model synthesis of Clifford circuits, which prepare the stabilizer states used in quantum error correction and admit exact classical verification. In our target-conditioned framework, each target is given as compact signed stabilizer generators, and an exact verifier checks the generated OpenQASM circuits. We supervise models with Aaronson-Gottesman chain-of-thought (AG-CoT) traces checked by the verifier, and continue training on model generations that the verifier accepts. Across two independently trained model families (3B and 7B), AG-CoT supervision multiplies greedy-decode state-equivalence accuracy by four to six times over circuit-only baselines, and verifier-filtered continuation training adds a further consistent gain atop both. A complementary 32B study shows that supervised models achieve near-perfect syntax and Clifford validity while the strongest direct model reaches 6.14% state equivalence per target, rising to over 10% under verifier-guided selection with multiple candidates. These results show that algorithmic trace supervision gives a large, statistically significant gain in both model families and that verifier-filtered continuation adds a further repeated gain. The persistent gap between Clifford validity and state equivalence confirms that exact verification is necessary: a circuit can be syntactically and physically valid yet prepare the wrong quantum state.

Sun 27 SeptMachine LearningComputation and Language
The gist
Programs that generate scientific code can produce correct syntax but fail to perform the right calculations. This paper studies how language models build quantum circuits used in quantum error correction, focusing on a subgroup called Clifford circuits that can be precisely checked classically. The authors show that guiding these models with detailed algorithmic reasoning steps, called Aaronson-Gottesman chain-of-thought traces, and continuing training on verified correct outputs boosts accuracy severalfold compared to training only on code. They also find that just passing syntax and physical validity checks is not enough to guarantee correct quantum states, highlighting the need for exact verification.
Open → 2609.33192v1

Measuring complexity of quantum experiments for classical simulation

Probing the classical complexity of quantum dynamics experiments

Abstract: A confluence of recent works has shown that many quantum circuits and dynamics are efficiently simulable by classical algorithms that track local information, even when conventional complexity measures such as the entanglement and magic are high. Here, we introduce a novel measure of complexity, the reactivity, to capture this new method of classical attack. Unlike conventional complexity measures, the reactivity does not capture a property of a quantum state or operator in isolation, but rather a quantum experiment as a whole. We provide numerical and rigorous evidence that quantum experiments with low reactivity are simple by a host of measures: they are efficient to classically simulate, learn, and fast-forward. This motivates the search for quantum experiments with high reactivity, which may evade these simplistic features. To this end, we introduce easily implementable experimental protocols---dubbed Pauli path spectroscopy---that allow one to efficiently measure the reactivity of any quantum experiment of interest. Our protocols are applicable even when the experiment itself is beyond the reach of classical simulation.

Fri 25 SeptComputational Complexity
The gist
Quantum experiments can sometimes be simulated on regular computers even when they seem very complex. The authors introduce a new way to measure this complexity called reactivity, which looks at the entire experiment instead of just states or parts. They show that experiments with low reactivity are easier to simulate, understand, and speed up using classical computers. They also propose efficient methods called Pauli path spectroscopy to measure reactivity, even for experiments too complex to simulate directly.
Open → 2609.31830v1

New methods enable efficient quantum error correction codes and magic state preparation

Sipser-Spielman meets Dijkgraaf-Witten: non-Abelian qLDPC codes via twisted sheaf gauge theory and almost-constant-overhead magic state fountain

Abstract: Sipser-Spielman codes and Dijkgraaf-Witten twisted gauge theories are among the most profound ideas in the last few decades in the areas of computer science and mathematical physics respectively. This work unifies them in the same framework using the language of sheaf cohomology, and produces a new framework of twisted sheaf guage theories describing a class of quantum low-density parity-check (qLDPC) codes with non-Abelian $D_4$ topological order. The corresponding twisted qLDPC code can be obtained from gauging a new type of 0-form sub-complex $\mathbb{Z}_2^3$ symmetry from a qLDPC code defined on a sheaf complex, and can be interpreted as a topological defect network of non-Abelain $D_4$ patches glued together with proper gapped interfaces. As an application, one can use this to realize a \textit{magic state fountain} via the gauging measurement of the addressable logical CZ gates as 0-form subcomplex symmetries in a 2D hypergraph-product on a sheaf complex. This includes a scheme of subdividing an arbitrary constant-rate 2D hypergraph-product code with parameter $[[n,Θ(n), Ω(n^{1/2})]]$ into a quantum sheaf code which allows preparation of $Θ(n^{1/2})$ in parallel, equivalent to the recent geometric construction using the code-to-manifold mapping in (arXiv:2601.06736). Moreover, using the recent sheaf complex and algebraic code constructions by Golowich-Tamo-Zhu (arXiv:2609.27801) with parameter $[[n,Θ(n^{1-ε}), Ω(n^{(1-ε)/2})]]$ for arbitrary small $ε$, one can prepare $Θ(n^{1-ε})$ CZ magic states in parallel and hence achieve an almost-constant magic rate.

Fri 25 SeptInformation Theory
The gist
Quantum computers need special codes to protect information from errors. This paper connects ideas from computer science and math to create a new type of error-correcting code with more complex symmetries. These codes use a special mathematical framework called sheaf cohomology and describe new quantum systems with non-simple underlying structures. The authors show how this approach lets many essential quantum resources called magic states be prepared efficiently and in parallel. This could help build more reliable and powerful quantum computers.
Open → 2609.31541v1

Reinforcement learning improves quantum neural network training speed and accuracy

Modeling quantum neural network gradient with reinforcement learning

Abstract: Training quantum neural networks (QNNs) on near-term hardware remains hampered by two compounding difficulties: the exponential vanishing of gradient variance known as the barren plateau, and the $\mathcal{O}(L \cdot 2^n)$ time and memory cost of differentiating through an $n$-qubit, $L$-layer circuit. We propose RLQ-Grad, a reinforcement-learning-based optimizer in which a classical policy $π_φ$ (a spectrally-normalized PPO agent) learns to propose parameter updates directly, conditioned on the QNN's current parameters, loss, accuracy, and previous update. Because the surrogate gradient is emitted by a classical network rather than obtained by differentiating through the unitary $U(θ)$, its variance is not constrained by the barren plateau concentration bound, and its cost scales with the number of trainable parameters rather than the Hilbert-space dimension. We prove these properties formally and verify them on a hardware-efficient ansatz across four supervised benchmarks with up to $n=20$ qubits. RLQ-Grad preserves a near-flat gradient-variance curve where backpropagation, parameter-shift, and adjoint differentiation decay by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude. Accounting for the full training pipeline (PPO rollouts, actor-critic updates, and optimizer states), RLQ-Grad needs under 2 MB of memory and runs $2490\times$, $7876\times$, and $673\times$ faster per iteration than these three methods at $n=20$. It improves top-1 accuracy by up to $+10\%$ over gradient-based baselines on circuits of up to 12 qubits, and matches dedicated barren plateau mitigation methods on CIFAR-10 at 14 to 20 qubits, where evolutionary and gradient-free optimizers collapse to chance.

Fri 25 SeptEmerging TechnologiesNeural and Evolutionary Computing
The gist
Training quantum neural networks is tricky because their gradients can vanish, making learning very slow, and calculating these gradients becomes extremely demanding as networks grow. The authors developed RLQ-Grad, which uses a classical reinforcement learning agent to suggest updates for quantum neural network parameters instead of calculating gradients directly. This approach avoids problems with vanishing gradients, reduces memory and time costs drastically, and improves accuracy on several tests. It works well on quantum circuits up to 20 qubits, running thousands of times faster than traditional methods while maintaining good performance.
Open → 2609.31066v1

Non-Abelian quantum codes achieve high error protection and new magic states

Non-Abelian sheaf quantum LDPC codes: good and magical

Abstract: Non-Abelian quantum codes connect quantum error correction, phases of matter, and computational resources. In this work, we develop a general framework for constructing non-Abelian quantum low-density parity-check (qLDPC) codes by gauging sheaf codes via cup products and use it to obtain families with constant encoding rate and linear distance. We resolve the coupled logical constraints using explicit representatives to characterize the full gauged code space. We provide a fundamental treatment of code distance based on the general Knill--Laflamme condition and combine expansion with cleaning to establish protection against arbitrary low-weight errors. We further construct an almost-good family whose entire code space exhibits long-range magic. Gauging and ungauging also enable logical Clifford measurements that prepare encoded magic states. These results extend good qLDPC codes beyond the Pauli stabilizer setting and provide a concrete foundation for exploring non-Abelian phases beyond geometric locality and pursuing the no low-energy trivial magic conjecture.

Thu 24 SeptInformation Theory
The gist
Quantum computers need special codes to protect information from errors, and most codes studied so far use simpler mathematical structures called Abelian groups. This work by the authors develops a new way to build quantum error-correcting codes using more complex non-Abelian structures, which can protect data better and create special quantum states called magic states. These codes have good properties like keeping a constant rate of encoding and detecting many errors, which is important for reliable quantum computing. They also introduce methods for measuring and handling quantum information in these advanced codes.
Open → 2609.30159v1

Magic-state cultivation runtime speeds quantum fault-tolerant computing

MagiCFirm: A Runtime for Magic-State Cultivation with Algorithm-Hardware Co-Design

Abstract: Magic-state cultivation offers a promising alternative for lowering the cost of non-Clifford operations in fault-tolerant quantum computing (FTQC). However, realizing cultivation in practice exposes two challenges: (i) the lack of an open-source classical runtime layer between logical software and physical control, and (ii) the latency constraints on protocol-specific decisions that determine magic-state readiness. To address these challenges, we adopt an algorithm--hardware co-design approach. At the algorithm level, we develop a two-stage early-escape scheme that identifies an informative subset of detectors offline, constructs a compact decoding problem, and performs partial decoding in parallel with complete decoding at runtime, allowing high-confidence attempts to advance before full decoding completes. At the hardware level, we present MagiCFirm, a configurable runtime that combines offline-compiled microprograms with dedicated datapaths for detector construction, event processing, and protocol control, enabling end-to-end execution of magic-state cultivation. Across evaluated configurations, MagiCFirm reduces wall-clock magic-state preparation time by up to 39.3% at matched logical error rate. For a representative magic-state-bound workload, this translates to an estimated 11% reduction in overall application runtime.

Thu 24 SeptHardware ArchitectureDistributed, Parallel, and Cluster Computing
The gist
Fault-tolerant quantum computers need special magic states to run certain operations, but preparing these states is tricky and slow. The authors introduce MagiCFirm, a system that uses smart algorithms and hardware design together to speed up this preparation. Their approach identifies important parts of the process early and handles them quickly, cutting down wait times. This makes quantum computing faster for tasks that need many magic states.
Open → 2609.29267v1

Quantum circuit design speeds up solving equations in any finite field

A Quantum Circuit for Gaussian Elimination

Abstract: A quantum circuit for Gaussian elimination is developed in this work. While previous quantum implementations of Gaussian elimination were restricted to $\mathrm{GF}(2)$, the proposed design is generalized to any finite field. Compared with previous works in $\mathrm{GF}(2)$, the developed circuit achieves garbage-free construction while retaining the best known asymptotic Toffoli depth up to logarithmic factors.

Thu 24 SeptEmerging Technologies
The gist
Solving systems of equations is important for many tasks in science and engineering. The authors developed a new quantum circuit that can perform Gaussian elimination, a common method for solving equations, but now on any finite field, not just simple binary ones. Their approach avoids unnecessary extra computations and keeps the process efficient in terms of the key quantum operations needed. This advancement could help in applying quantum computing to a wider range of mathematical problems.
Open → 2609.28901v1

Cubical sheaf complexes enable new efficient quantum error correcting codes

Cubical Sheaf Complexes with Constant Expansion with Applications to Asymptotically Good qLTCs

Abstract: For every fixed integers $r \ge 4$ and $2 \le k \le r-2$, we construct $r$-dimensional cubical sheaf complexes whose degree-$k$ CSS codes have positive constant rate, linear distance, and constant soundness, with bounded row and column weights. Taking $r=4$ and $k=2$ gives a family of asymptotically good binary qLTCs. At the core of our construction is a uniform product-expansion theorem for explicit Reed-Solomon codes on norm-one evaluation sets. The key point is that the expansion constant stays bounded away from zero as the local code lengths grow. We place these codes on arithmetic cubical complexes, obtaining constant local expansion for both the resulting sheaf and its dual. Together with the local-to-global framework of Dinur, Lin, and Vidick (FOCS 2024) and sheaf duality, this gives linear distance and constant soundness, while an asymmetric choice of local code dimensions gives positive rate. The resulting codes are explicit and polynomial-time computable.

Wed 23 SeptInformation TheoryComputational Complexity
The gist
Quantum computers need special codes to protect information from errors while still allowing computations. This paper shows how to build certain multi-dimensional structures called cubical sheaf complexes that lead to quantum codes with good properties: they have a high rate of information, can detect errors reliably, and are efficiently constructed. The authors use advanced tools from coding theory and geometry to build these codes explicitly, improving on previous designs. This helps pave the way for better quantum error correction methods.
Open → 2609.28028v1

Real-time flux correction boosts superconducting quantum gate accuracy

Precision and resource scaling of real-time flux distortion compensation for superconducting quantum control

Abstract: Real-time waveform generation supports dynamic quantum circuits without pre-storing complete waveforms for every execution path. However, long-lived distortions in flux-control lines degrade gate fidelity, requiring compensation to account for the actual pulse history. A frequency-domain inversion and time-domain fitting method is proposed for resource-efficient real-time flux distortion compensation. The method fits the reconstructed compensation impulse response with a compact hybrid infinite impulse response (IIR) and finite impulse response (FIR) filter. Look-ahead parallelization enables this filter to process synthesized waveforms at 1.2GSa/s on a field-programmable gate array (FPGA). Two-qubit cross-entropy benchmarking shows that real-time IIR filtering achieves a median controlled-Z Pauli fidelity close to the software-reference value of 99.57%. Numerical analysis and FPGA synthesis indicate approximately logarithmic growth in hardware resource use with compensation timescale. Extending compensation from microsecond to hundred-microsecond timescales increases look-up table (LUT) and digital signal processing (DSP) resource use by only about 14% and 4%, respectively, while maintaining a relative arithmetic error below $10^{-4}$. This work provides a scalable hardware foundation for high-fidelity flux control in dynamic superconducting quantum circuits.

Wed 23 SeptHardware Architecture
The gist
Quantum computers use special electrical signals to control qubits, but leftover distortions can cause errors. The authors developed a fast method using a smart filter running on hardware to fix these distortions in real-time without needing a lot of resources. Their approach keeps the quantum gates accurate over longer times with only a small increase in computer resources. This helps make quantum circuits more reliable and efficient.
Open → 2609.27456v1

Good quantum codes enable new transversal controlled Z logical gates

Transversal non-Clifford gates on good quantum locally testable codes

Abstract: We achieve nontrivial transversal logical multi-controlled-$Z$ gates with asymptotically optimal parameters simultaneously on quantum low-density parity check codes and quantum locally testable codes, by applying the gate framework of [arXiv:2604.01874] to the recent good qLTC construction of [arXiv:2609.20780]. To this end, we use the covering space method to construct a nonzero cup product pairing on a finite arithmetic cubical complex. This differs from the previous construction of almost-good codes, whose base space is a hypergraph product. We express the pairing as a coefficient in a product of Moore determinants and prove polynomial nonvanishing by a bipartite multigraph specialization. We then construct covering spaces to obtain an asymptotic family of good qLTCs on which the pulled-back pairing induces the desired nontrivial transversal logical action.

Tue 22 SeptInformation Theory
The gist
Quantum computing requires ways to protect information from errors using quantum error-correcting codes. The authors show how to create a family of such codes that not only protect well but also support a special kind of logical operation called transversal multi-controlled-Z gates. These operations can be performed quickly and in parallel across the encoded data, which is valuable for building practical quantum computers. Their constructions use advanced mathematical tools involving geometric spaces and algebra, improving on previous approaches.
Open → 2609.26691v1

Simulating quantum circuits with dynamic measurements using tensor networks

Tensor Network Simulation of Dynamic Circuits

Abstract: Dynamic circuits, which incorporate mid-circuit measurements and classically controlled operations, extend the expressive power of quantum programs and are central to applications such as quantum error correction, state preparation, and distributed quantum algorithms. However, their classical simulation is challenging due to the exponential growth of execution branches induced by mid-circuit measurements. In this work, we develop a tensor network approach for simulating dynamic circuits by extending a DMRG-based method for quantum circuit simulation to support dynamic circuit operations. To address the exponential proliferation of execution branches, we introduce and compare two strategies: a single-path stochastic approach that samples individual measurement outcomes, and a multi-path approach that maintains an ensemble of branches. We benchmark these methods on standard dynamic circuits, including the teleportation protocol and GHZ state preparation, as well as on random dynamic circuits. Our analysis explores the trade-offs between simulation accuracy and computational efficiency. These results provide a practical and scalable framework for the classical simulation of dynamic circuits.

Tue 22 SeptEmerging Technologies
The gist
Quantum circuits that can change mid-run by measuring and adjusting parts of the system are powerful but hard to simulate on regular computers because they create many possible outcomes to track. The authors developed a new simulation method that uses a mathematical tool called tensor networks, which helps manage the complex calculations. They tested two ways to handle the many possible outcomes: one samples single results randomly, and the other keeps track of many possible paths at once. Their work helps make simulating these dynamic quantum programs more practical and scalable.
Open → 2609.26516v1

Quantum circuit optimizer uses machine learning for better efficiency

Bridge of $Ψ$'s: Quantum Circuit Optimization with Schrödinger Bridges

Abstract: Quantum circuit optimization replaces a circuit with an equivalent one of fewer gates and lower depth, reducing execution cost and error rate. We ask whether a generative model can learn this transformation directly from examples, rather than selecting from a fixed rewrite library or rigid algebraic routines. We present Bridge of $Ψ$'s (BOPS), a generative model based on Schrödinger bridges, using a custom denoiser architecture, that learns a transformation from a source circuit into an equivalent optimized circuit. We train it on data constructed to be hard for existing optimizers, by applying rewrite rules backwards so that each input has a known lower-cost target. On held-out 8 qubits $\times$ 64 depth Clifford+$T$ circuits, BOPS reduces gate count by $2.46\times$ and depth by $2.45\times$ in geometric mean, outperforming all nine baseline optimizers. This constitutes the first generative model bridging quantum circuits and frontier machine learning methods, opening up the quantum compilation stack to learned optimization along multiple axes.

Tue 22 SeptMachine Learning
The gist
Quantum circuits are instructions for quantum computers, and making them shorter and simpler helps computers work faster and with fewer errors. The authors developed a new method called BOPS that learns how to rewrite these circuits into simpler versions by training on examples, instead of following fixed rules. They designed a special machine learning model inspired by Schrödinger bridges to do this. Tested on tough circuits, BOPS cut the number of steps and layers in half compared to existing methods.
Open → 2609.25947v1

Quantum methods improve machine learning and quantum error correction

When Quantum Meets AI: Quantum Methods for Machine Learning and Machine Learning Methods for Quantum Systems

Abstract: This thesis studies the intersection of quantum computing and artificial intelligence in two directions: quantum methods for machine learning and machine learning methods for quantum systems. For quantum machine learning, Neural Quantum Embedding learns data representations that increase the trace distance between embedded class ensembles, lowering an embedding-dependent bound on empirical risk and improving classification on noisy quantum hardware. A training objective based on the Hilbert-Schmidt inner product extends this approach to deterministic quantum computation with one qubit (DQC1) and is demonstrated on an NMR quantum processor. A margin-based generalization analysis then connects quantum neural network performance to quantum state discrimination. In the studied benchmarks, margin distributions predict generalization more reliably than parameter-count metrics. For quantum systems, a Mamba-based neural decoder for surface codes matches a reproduced Transformer baseline in memory experiments while reducing inference-cost scaling from quartic to quadratic in code distance. Under an explicit decoder-induced-noise model, it achieves lower logical error rates and a higher effective threshold. For neural quantum states, stochastic reconfiguration is interpreted as tangent-space ridge regression, with its diagonal shift controlling the bias-variance trade-off under finite Monte Carlo sampling. Multi-shift stochastic reconfiguration reduces checkpoint-local validation residuals and update variance relative to fixed-shift SR, at additional computational cost. Together, these contributions show how learned representations, statistical control, and hardware constraints shape the exchange between quantum computing and machine learning.

Tue 22 SeptArtificial Intelligence
The gist
This work explores how quantum computing and artificial intelligence can help each other. The researchers developed quantum versions of machine learning to classify data better, even on noisy quantum devices. They also improved decoding of quantum error-correcting codes using neural networks, reducing the computational cost and errors. Additionally, they analyzed how certain quantum-state representations relate to machine learning techniques to improve training stability. Together, these advances show ways to combine quantum and AI methods for better performance and understanding.
Open → 2609.25641v1

High-rate quantum error correcting codes improve reliability in quantum computers

High-Rate Quasi-Dyadic Quantum LDPC Codes

Abstract: In this work, we propose a novel design of high-rate Calderbank--Shor--Steane (CSS) quantum low-density parity-check (QLDPC) codes based on quasi-dyadic matrices. The Tanner graphs associated with the two component classical codes used to construct the proposed CSS codes are characterized by a girth of at least $6$. We also derive an exact count of length-$4$ cycles in the quaternary representation of the parity-check matrix. Monte Carlo simulations under code-capacity and phenomenological noise models show that the proposed codes have competitive finite-length logical error rate performance compared with state-of-the-art codes in both these settings.

Mon 21 SeptInformation Theory
The gist
Quantum computers need special error-correcting codes to stop mistakes during calculations. This paper presents a new type of code that combines two classical codes with special mathematical structures called quasi-dyadic matrices. Their design reduces problematic short cycles that can cause errors, leading to better performance. Testing shows these codes can correct errors as well as some of the best existing ones.
Open → 2609.24201v1

Quantum error correction reduces measurements and qudits needed for recovery

Simultaneous Reduction of Observables and Measured Qudits in Entanglement-Assisted Quantum Local Recovery

Abstract: For a general entanglement-assisted or unassisted quantum error-correcting code, a set of erasures, and an associated repair group, we propose a linear algebraic procedure to compute a reduced set of observables and a reduced repair group of codeword qudits for correcting the given erasures. The procedure has cubic complexity in the repair group size and the computed set of observables has the smallest possible size for correcting the given erasures. We specialize the general procedure to quantum codes constructed from Euclidean and Hermitian orthogonality, and provide closed-form upper bounds on the size of reduced repair groups for those special cases. Based on these closed-form bounds, we propose quantum counterparts of the information locality of classical local recovery.

Sun 20 SeptInformation Theory
The gist
Quantum computers need to fix mistakes caused by noise, and this requires measuring certain parts of their data and using specific qudits (quantum bits). The authors found a way to identify the smallest number of measurements and qudits necessary to recover the data after some are lost or erased. Their approach uses linear algebra and works efficiently for large sets of qudits. They also provide special formulas for certain types of quantum codes and relate their findings to ideas from classical data recovery.
Open → 2609.23316v1

Quantum transformer blocks reveal how quantum models process information

Watching Quantum Models Think: Hilbert-Space Interpretability in Quantum Transformer Blocks

Abstract: Deep learning models are powerful but opaque. As quantum machine learning matures, the field faces a defining choice: build quantum models that are equally opaque, or exploit the mathematical structure of quantum mechanics to make them inherently interpretable. We show that the latter is possible. By tracking quantum mutual information~(MI), entanglement entropy, and state fidelity through the layers of a Quantum Transformer Block (\qtb{}), a fully-coherent variational circuit with quantum analogues of both attention and feedforward, we gain direct insight into how the model processes information: which tokens it attends to, when correlations form, and why predictions fail. On four tasks with known dependency structure we show that (i)~learned MI matrices align with ground-truth task structure (AUC$\,{=}\,0.69$ on lookup), (ii)~disabling entangling gates collapses accuracy from 100\% to 15\% while MI$\to 0$, proving entanglement is the mechanism, (iii)~accuracy and MI co-evolve during training ($ρ\,{=}\,0.92$ on lookup), and (iv)~per-sample MI predicts prediction correctness on the conditional task with ROC AUC$\,{=}\,0.84$. All results are validated on IBM Quantum hardware (ibm\_kingston, Heron~r2): the circuit's reasoning process, from product state through structured entanglement, is directly observable on a superconducting processor. These proof-of-concept results, obtained on small synthetic tasks, suggest that the physics of quantum computation can provide intrinsic interpretability signals with no direct classical counterpart, motivating study of whether this advantage persists at scale.

Sat 19 SeptArtificial IntelligenceMachine Learning
The gist
Deep learning models are often like black boxes, making it hard to understand how they work. The authors show that quantum machine learning models can be designed to be more understandable by using the physics of quantum mechanics. By looking at measures like quantum mutual information and entanglement, they can see how the model focuses on input tokens and forms connections to make predictions. Their experiments on simple tasks and real quantum hardware demonstrate that the model’s reasoning steps can be directly observed, potentially offering a way to interpret quantum AI.
Open → 2609.23016v1

Quantum code distance proved hard to approximate with large error

Metric Self-Dual Completion and Optimal Additive Hardness for Quantum and Graph-State Distance

Abstract: We prove that the quantum code distance is NP-hard to approximate within an additive error of $c N$, for some constant $c >0$, where $N$ is the number of qubits. Our reductions are deterministic. This improves the previous square-root additive gap to $Ω(N)$ and resolves the explicitly stated linear-gap question of Kapshikar and Kundu. Our result holds for CSS codes with identical $X$- and $Z$-check spaces, and with a constant rate and constant relative distance. For every fixed $λ>1$, there is a constant $c>0$ such that hardness still holds even when every nonidentity stabilizer has weight greater than $λ$ times the quantum distance. We also improve the hardness gap of graph state distance on $N$ vertices of Grigorescu, Jha, and Samperton from cube-root to $Ω(N)$, resolving their explicitly stated open question. Both hardness results are asymptotically optimal since both distances are at most $N$. Our graph state distance hardness result holds for balanced bipartite graphs with a binary adjacency matrix that is its own inverse (mod 2). Our main technique for both hardness bounds above is classical: we show how to convert any code $C$ of length $m$ into a self-dual code $A(C)$ of length $N=Θ(m)$ while exactly doubling the original coset metric. The conversion is deterministic and efficient. We call it the metric self-dual completion of $C$. It comes with a linear embedding $τ: \mathbb F_2^m \hookrightarrow \mathbb F_2^N$. The embedding doubles all Hamming distances between vectors in $\mathbb F_2^m$ and all pairwise distances between corresponding cosets. The embedding also guarantees that all codewords of $A(C)$ of weight at most $2m$ are exactly $τ(C)$.

Sat 19 SeptComputational ComplexityInformation Theory
The gist
Measuring how well a quantum error-correcting code protects information is very important but also very hard. This paper shows that even finding an approximate measure of this protection level within a large margin of error is computationally difficult (NP-hard). The authors improved on previous results by proving this hardness for larger error margins and for specific types of codes. Their approach involves a new method called metric self-dual completion that transforms codes while preserving and scaling certain distance properties.
Open → 2609.22669v1

Efficient quantum method speeds up Hermite transform calculations

Efficient Non-Uniform Quantum Hermite Transform through Adaptive Sampling

Abstract: On the span of the first $N$ oscillator modes, Gauss--Hermite quadrature gives an exact change of basis between mode coefficients and $N$ weighted position space samples. We implement this transform with $O(N\operatorname{polylog}(N,1/\varepsilon))$ logical gates and polylogarithmic quantum width. The operator-error bound $\varepsilon$ holds on arbitrary superpositions and includes all auxiliary registers. The construction uses signed averages on adaptive windows to convert uniform-grid samples into weighted Hermite-root samples. Their varying widths control the amplification cost, giving the near-linear bound.

Thu 17 SeptDistributed, Parallel, and Cluster ComputingEmerging Technologies
The gist
Some tasks in quantum computing involve changing how certain data is represented, like switching between wave modes and their positions. This paper shows a faster way to perform a specific transformation called the quantum Hermite transform using fewer quantum operations. The new method carefully chooses where to sample data to make the process more efficient without losing accuracy. This means quantum computers can handle certain calculations more quickly and with less overhead.
Open → 2609.20739v1

Tetriscnn reveals phases of matter using interpretable neural networks

TetrisCNN for interpretable detection of phases of matter from experimental quantum simulator data

Abstract: Detecting phases of matter in general relies on identifying the correct order parameter - a task that remains notoriously difficult for unknown transitions and traditionally is guided by physical intuition and educated guess. Neural networks have recently offered an alternative route by locating phase transitions in known models without any a priori physical knowledge. Yet these approaches remain black boxes and only identify phases without elucidating their properties. Moreover, they often struggle when confronted with realistic, noisy experimental data, which constitute the ultimate testbed for automated methods in physics. Here, we bridge these perspectives by introducing TetrisCNN, a convolutional architecture with parallel branches of differently shaped filters, reminiscent of Tetris blocks, that learns sparse, interpretable latent representations directly in terms of spin correlators. Applied to experimental snapshots of two-dimensional Ising and XY quantum simulators measured in multiple bases, the network not only detects phase transitions and crossovers but also expresses its latent representation and decision boundaries as symbolic formulas built from experimentally measurable spin correlators. This framework opens the way to integrating interpretable neural networks with quantum simulators to uncover and understand new phases of matter.

Thu 17 SeptMachine Learning
The gist
Identifying phases of matter usually requires knowing what patterns to look for, which can be very challenging without prior knowledge. The authors developed TetrisCNN, a special type of neural network that looks at experimental data and not only detects changes in matter but also explains its decisions using clear mathematical formulas. This method works well even on noisy, real-world data from quantum experiments, helping scientists understand new phases of matter more directly. It combines the power of AI with physical insight, making it easier to discover and describe complex states in quantum systems.
Open → 2609.20693v1

Galois hull dimension improves quantum error-correcting code design

Galois Hulls of Generalized Roth-Lempel Codes and Their Applications to EAQECCs

Abstract: The dimension of a Galois hull is an important parameter in the construction of entanglement-assisted quantum error-correcting codes. In this paper, we study generalized Roth-Lempel (GRL) codes with prescribed Galois hull dimensions over finite fields of arbitrary characteristic. We develop a common construction method based on normalized Lagrange coefficients and suitable choices of column multipliers, and obtain six explicit constructions from multiplicative cosets, trace fibers, additive-subspace cosets, and mixed additive--multiplicative fibers. For extension sizes $s=2$ and $s=3$, we construct MDS and AMDS GRL codes with Galois hulls of specific dimensions. The resulting codes provide EAQECCs with explicit dimension, entanglement consumption, and relatively large minimum distance. Taking zero-dimensional hulls also gives Hermitian LCD GRL codes and the corresponding maximally entangled EAQECCs.

Thu 17 SeptInformation Theory
The gist
Quantum computers need special codes to protect information from errors. These codes often rely on mathematical objects called Galois hulls. The authors studied a type of code called generalized Roth-Lempel codes and found ways to build them with precise control over the Galois hull’s size. This control allows creating better quantum error-correcting codes that use entanglement efficiently and have good error protection. Their methods provide explicit constructions useful for developing such quantum codes.
Open → 2609.20453v1

Variational quantum methods improve copper site chemical simulations greatly

VQE Validation on the Mononuclear T1 (Blue-Copper) Site: A Stepping Stone to the Multi-Copper Laccase Cluster

Abstract: Validating variational quantum eigensolver (VQE) pipelines on realistic chemical systems is a critical stepping stone toward tackling classically intractable molecules. In this work, we report emulator-based validation of the VQE workflow proposed for the copper active site, executed on the LRZ Eviden Qaptiva emulator. A problem-tailored ADAPT-VQE with a full singles-doubles-triples (S+D+T) pool removes over 99% of the correlation error, reaching a stable plateau at 4.03 mEh relative to exact diagonalisation (148 selected operators). This establishes a >40x improvement over the hardware-efficient ansatz (HEA). Finally, we frame these emulator results as a robust baseline for upcoming physical quantum hardware runs on Euro-Q-Exa.

Thu 17 SeptEmerging Technologies
The gist
Simulating molecules with many electrons is very hard for regular computers. The authors tested a quantum computing approach called VQE on a specific copper atom site in a molecule, using an emulator (a classical simulation of a quantum computer). Their tailored method greatly reduced error compared to other approaches and approached nearly exact results. This work lays the foundation for running such chemistry simulations on real quantum hardware in the future.
Open → 2609.20439v1

Calibration improves trust in AI advice for quantum error correction

Securing quantum error correction against misleading advice from AI agents

Abstract: Can an attacker turn influence over an artificial intelligence (AI) adviser into a harmful quantum error-correction update? We identify an ambiguity in passive syndrome records that obstructs recovery selection, then show how additional calibration measurements support certified recovery updates under uncertainty and drift. In an odd-distance square toric code with error-free preparation, syndrome measurements, and recovery operations, opposite coherent $X$ rotations produce identical passive syndrome-history distributions. Yet a fixed phase correction can help at one sign and harm at the other. A terminal logical measurement on known encoded calibration states supplies the missing sign information. A separate evaluator accepts an update only when calibration uncertainty and a justified drift bound certify improvement over the current recovery, without assuming that the adviser recommends correctly. In simulated advice attacks, calibration-confidence checks reject harmful proposals while retaining beneficial updates under honest advice. We derive sufficient limits on calibration age that require improvement through deployment. In matched simulations, a validated channel-specific bound retains more beneficial updates than the general bound after accounting for evaluation time, while preventing the tested harmful activations under the stated drift assumption. A separate surface-code experiment includes stochastic circuit faults and noise changing during acquisition. Deterministic controllers achieve at least as many beneficial updates with the same observations. Violating the drift assumption permits harmful acceptance in the toric experiment. The results identify information required for recovery selection, establish conditional guarantees against harmful updates, and quantify the recovery improvements forgone through conservative acceptance.

Wed 16 SeptArtificial IntelligenceCryptography and Security
The gist
Quantum computers need to fix errors that happen during their operation, but sometimes AI systems used to suggest how to fix these errors can be tricked into giving wrong advice. The authors found that by adding special calibration measurements, it is possible to tell when the AI’s advice might actually make things worse. They created methods to check if updates based on AI advice genuinely improve error correction, even when the advice might be unreliable or affected by system changes. Their experiments show how to reject harmful suggestions while still taking good ones, helping to keep quantum computers working better.
Open → 2609.19090v1

Quantum algorithm speeds up simulating open quantum systems efficiently

Query-Optimal and Gate-Efficient Lindbladian Simulation

Abstract: We give a quantum algorithm for Lindbladian simulation given a block encoding of the Hamiltonian $H$ and a projected unitary encoding of the stacked jump operator $B=\sum_{k=1}^m \lvert k\rangle\otimes L_k$, with normalization factors $α_H$ and $α_B$, respectively. For evolution time $t$, set $τ=(α_H+α_B^2)t$. The algorithm approximates the evolution channel to diamond-norm error $\varepsilon$ using $O\!\left(τ+\frac{\log(1/\varepsilon)}{\log\!\left(e+\log(1/\varepsilon)/τ\right)}\right)$ oracle queries, matching the query lower bound for Hamiltonian simulation. The number of additional one- and two-qubit gates is linear in the query complexity up to polylogarithmic factors. The query- and gate-complexity bounds extend to Lipschitz-continuous time-dependent Lindbladians under coherent time-indexed oracle access. Our construction uses a one-query transducer that implements a product of rational approximations to short-time evolution when supplied with a catalyst. We bound the error from omitting the catalyst by exploiting orthogonality between different sequences of Kraus labels. The gate implementation combines a compressed Kraus-label representation, which stores only the positions and values of the nonzero labels, with the rotation factorization of Chen et al.

Wed 16 SeptData Structures and Algorithms
The gist
Simulating how quantum systems interact with their environments is a key challenge in quantum computing. The authors present a new quantum algorithm that simulates these open quantum systems with optimal query efficiency and fewer computational gates. Their approach uses clever encoding methods and approximations to accurately mimic the system’s evolution while balancing accuracy and computational cost. This makes such simulations potentially more practical on future quantum devices.
Open → 2609.18757v1

Quantum tomography exploration improves physical estimation variance

GRPO-QM: Target Preserving Exploration for Quantum Tomography

Abstract: Reward-based learning can alter the very posterior distribution that scientific inference aims to estimate. GRPO-QM sidesteps this by learning only an exploration strategy for a stated quantum-tomography posterior: a group-relative policy chooses among reversible physical moves, and an exact Metropolis correction ensures the posterior remains stationary once the policy is fixed. We then examine what learning contributes beyond physical proposal mechanisms and prior knowledge. Reconstruction comparisons suggest that most of the gains over the tested flows come from those two components rather than from learning itself, and a closed-form counterexample explains why: a reward tied to accepted motion can increase even when a physical observable remains highly correlated. Reward comparisons that control for initialization also show that aggregating across posteriors can invert the ranking that a reward implies within any single posterior. Lastly, on 45 enumerated posteriors with three training seeds each, exact and sampled gradients of the same trajectory objective reduce mean physical estimation variance by $12.63\%$ and $6.32\%$ relative to a tuned mixture, while averaging the trajectory score without rescaling its penalty yields only $0.43\%$. This indicates that objective scaling accounts for part of the disparity between sampled and exact training. The regained benefit is concentrated at four shots and flips sign at sixteen, so these exact, visible-bank diagnostics identify a concrete, reproducible failure mode in sampled training, the objective-scaling fix that addresses part of it, and the remaining gap.

Sun 13 SeptMachine Learning
The gist
Quantum tomography is a way to figure out the state of a quantum system, but reward-based learning methods can change the very system they are trying to measure. The authors developed GRPO-QM, a method that learns how to explore the quantum system without altering the underlying distribution being estimated. They found that most improvements come from smart physical moves and prior knowledge, rather than from the learning algorithm itself. Their analysis also revealed some specific limitations of current learning approaches and how to partially fix them.
Open → 2609.14711v1

NAQsim enables fast fault-tolerant quantum computing with neutral atoms

NAQsim: Full-Stack Architecture Simulation Framework for Fast and Space-Efficient Neutral Atom Quantum Computing

Abstract: Technological advances in neutral-atom platforms have opened a new path toward designing efficient protocols for fault-tolerant quantum computing (FTQC). However, each physical operation is still orders of magnitude slower than on other platforms, such as superconducting qubits. Therefore, architects must identify fast and efficient FTQC architectures, which require reliable modeling tools to explore various design choices across the software, classical hardware, and quantum device stacks of neutral-atom platforms. In this paper, we propose NAQsim, an open-source simulation framework for neutral-atom FTQC architectures based on transversal gates. As its key feature, NAQsim enables detailed full-stack architecture evaluation that opens opportunities to explore previously overlooked performance bottlenecks. As a first use case for NAQsim, we identify one such bottleneck, patch rotations, perform full-stack co-optimization, and finally derive a near-rotation-free architecture (D3-ROT). For practical FTQC benchmark workloads, D3-ROT achieves a 2.27x speedup from this single bottleneck alone, with minimal footprint overhead. These results point to a much broader space of full-stack optimizations that NAQsim makes accessible for transversal surface-code architectures and beyond.

Sun 13 SeptHardware Architecture
The gist
Neutral-atom quantum computers are slow compared to other types, making it hard to build reliable and efficient systems. The authors created NAQsim, a tool that simulates these computers from hardware to software in detail. Using NAQsim, they found a big slowdown cause called patch rotations and designed a new way to avoid them, speeding up the computer over twice as fast. This shows how deeper simulation can help improve future quantum machines.
Open → 2609.14478v1

Algebraic codes over complex integer rings improve quantum error correction

Hermitian Duality and Syndrome Structure of CSS-Type Codes over the ring $\mathbb{Z}_q[i]$

Abstract: We study the algebraic structure of principal ideal codes and CSS-type stabilizer constructions over the ring $ R_q=\mathbb Z_q[i],$ where every prime divisor of $q$ is congruent to $1$ modulo $4$. Although such ring-based constructions have recently been considered in the context of classical and quantum error correction, the precise relationship among principal ideal cardinalities, Hermitian duality, algebraic cosets, and stabilizer syndromes requires further structural analysis. We obtain cardinality formulas for principal ideals and their annihilators. For a length-one principal ideal code $C=\langleα\rangle$, we show that its Hermitian dual is $ C^{\perp_H}=\operatorname{Ann}(σ(α)). $ For nested codes satisfying $ C_2^{\perp_H}\subseteq C_1\subseteq C_2, $ we determine the corresponding CSS-type stabilizer and prove that the kernel of the physical $X$-error syndrome map is $ \ker(\operatorname{Syn}_X)=C_2. $ Consequently, $C_2/C_1$ parametrizes logical $X$-operator classes and $R_q^n/C_2$ parametrizes physical $X$-error syndrome classes. Using this syndrome quotient, we construct a transversal of $C_2$ in $R_q^n$ whose elements have pairwise distinct physical $X$-error syndromes. The corresponding $X$-type error family is correctable by stabilizer syndrome measurement, yielding a syndrome-based recovery procedure that is consistent with the stabilizer structure. Explicit examples illustrate the resulting duality, cardinality, and syndrome structure.

Sun 13 SeptInformation Theory
The gist
This paper studies special error-correcting codes built from a ring of complex numbers with integer parts. The authors connect structures called principal ideals and their duals to understand how certain kinds of errors can be detected and corrected in quantum systems. They also describe how error syndromes (signatures of errors) relate to these codes and provide a way to recover from errors based on these measurements. Their work clarifies mathematical connections that help design and analyze quantum error correction.
Open → 2609.14434v1

Measurement correlations shape practical costs of certifying quantum models

Certification cost of quantum models: measurement correlation, not parameter count

Abstract: Reporting the Fisher geometry of a trained variational quantum model is routine; quoting the shot budget that would establish it is not. Certifying an empirical Fisher matrix to relative Frobenius error $\varepsilon$ under coordinate-wise parameter shift costs $Θ(B p^{2} V/(\varepsilon^{2} G))$ circuit executions, where $V$ is the measured readout variance and $G$ the measured squared gradient norm, with uniform allocation optimal in that class. One constant reproduces the cost of two circuit families whose exponents differ by a full power of $p$. The exponent is an identity in how $nV$ and $nG$ scale with the register, holding family by family to $0.001$ across 624 matrix-product-state cells once the finite-$p$ prefactor is removed. The cubic cost is therefore a finite-size window, set by whether the readout light cone grows with the register. A product family to 256 qubits gives $1.966$ (95% CI $1.934$--$1.997$); a brickwork entangler falls from $2.853$ below ten qubits to $1.715$ beyond sixty-four; a blocked entangler gives $1.984$ at a fixed cone width against $3.034$ at a proportional one. Fixed device connectivity fixes the cone, so a cubic budget from a small simulation overestimates a large machine, on top of hardware multipliers $2.07\times$ ($1.41$--$3.02$), $2.38\times$ and $1.91\times$ on ibm_marrakesh, ibm_fez and ibm_kingston. Cost-optimal readout weights cut the measured shot budget by $2.67\times$ ($1.33$--$4.00$) on hardware, flat from four to twelve qubits. A discrepancy model fitted on cheap circuits transfers its mean inside the calibration grid and, at six larger sizes named before the data, does not: nominal 90% intervals cover 36%, and split conformal is the only rung that stays near nominal.

Sun 13 SeptMachine Learning
The gist
Measuring how well quantum computer models learn usually looks at many factors, but often misses how many runs of the circuit are needed to trust these measures. The authors studied how the number of measurements (shots) needed depends more on the correlations in measurement results than on the number of parameters in the model. They found that commonly assumed cubic scaling in parameters only appears in certain cases, and that actual measurement costs can be much lower depending on the setup. They also show ways to optimize measurements to reduce costs and highlight where simple models for error may fail.
Open → 2609.14424v1

Quantum oracle sketching faces depth limits on current devices

Practical Considerations for Processing Massive Classical Data via Quantum Oracle Sketching

Abstract: Classical-to-quantum I/O is a critical bottleneck for data-intensive quantum workloads. Quantum Oracle Sketching (QOS) has been proposed to address this problem. We identify its practical requirements, including the representation of data as a probability distribution over oracle addresses, the relation between sample count, approximation error, and update cost, and the coherence and runtime support required for online execution. To study QOS on current quantum computing devices, we develop an offline realization that compiles sample blocks into empirical phase oracles and evaluate it using DNA fingerprinting. The application converges with relatively few samples, while exact phase fusion combines repeated updates to the same address. However, the compiled circuits remain too deep for current quantum computing devices. Practical QOS therefore requires lower depth oracle synthesis and interactive quantum runtimes.

Fri 11 SeptEmerging Technologies
The gist
Processing large amounts of classical data on quantum computers is slowed down by the challenge of loading that data quickly. The paper looks at quantum oracle sketching (QOS), a way to represent data for quantum processing, and studies what it needs to work well, like how many samples to take and how fast updates happen. The authors tested their approach on DNA data and found it works with relatively few samples but requires quantum circuits that are too complex for today’s quantum machines. They conclude that simpler circuits and better quantum processing methods are needed for practical use.
Open → 2609.13549v1

Scalability challenges limit fault-tolerant trapped-ion quantum computers

WISER: Systematic Design-Space Exploration of Fault-Tolerant Global Control Trapped-Ions

Abstract: Trapped-ion quantum computers are a leading candidate for scalable fault-tolerant quantum computing, but conventional Quantum Charge-Coupled Device (QCCD) architectures face severe wiring and power constraints as systems scale. The recently proposed WISE promise orders-of-magnitude reductions in wiring complexity but fundamentally alter the hardware--software interface, making it unclear whether such restrictive architectures can feasibly execute quantum error correction (QEC) and eventually support fault-tolerant workloads. We present WISER, a cross-layer architectural design-space exploration framework for globally controlled trapped-ion systems, to determine whether WISE can support early FTQC, and what hardware/compiler/QEC choices are needed. WISER combines novel WISE-specific compilation, noise modelling, and simulation and integrated them into a unified framework. WISER provides comparative lower-bound estimates of logical clock speed and logical error rate, rather than absolute hardware prediction, enabling us to identify viable operating regions while ruling out infeasible ones. To our knowledge, it is the first systematic design space exploration study targeted at WISE and scalable architectures beyond QCCD. Using WISER, we identify a narrow feasible design space requiring two-ion traps, moderate control multiplexing, aggressive recooling, and high-rate bivariate-bicycle codes. Even under $\sim 10\times$ improvements in physical errors, the lower-bound cycle time to achieve $< 10^{-8}$ logical error is $\approx 100\,ms$, which is $3\times$ slower than local control. These results expose a fundamental trade-off between wiring scalability and logical throughput, suggesting that practical early fault-tolerant operation requires complementary $> 10\times$ physical error rate reductions along with substantial $> 100\times$ reduction in fault-tolerant circuit-depth.

Fri 11 SeptHardware Architecture
The gist
Scaling up trapped-ion quantum computers faces major challenges with wiring and power, which can slow down error correction needed for reliable operation. The authors created WISER, a tool to explore how new wiring-reducing designs called WISE affect performance and error rates. They found only a small range of designs that might work well, but even those run noticeably slower than traditional setups. This trade-off means making these systems practical will require big improvements in error rates and circuit efficiency.
Open → 2609.13546v1

Improving photon routing in linear optical quantum circuits to handle hardware flaws

Handling Imperfections in Subcircuit Compilation for Linear Optical Quantum Computing

Abstract: Linear Optical Quantum Computing (LOQC) is emerging as a promising technology in large-scale quantum computing. Corresponding devices, including linear optical circuits, are rapidly growing in size and fabrication precision. However, even with improved quality, the circuits still exhibit imperfections leading to photon loss or phase noise that vary across the circuit. Already small deficiencies can have a vast impact on both accuracy and efficiency. For computations that do not require the entire linear optical circuit, so-called subcircuits, one can choose where to perform the computation, opening optimization opportunities that are addressed by subcircuit compilation. Current compilers spread the subcircuit's computation across the entire circuit, connecting the same input and output ports, thereby failing to fully exploit the optimization opportunities. However, given the subcircuit's reduced size compared to the entire circuit, one can keep its implementation localized and intentionally route photons to connect good input and output ports. This, however, is a highly non-trivial task, as numerous options must be weighed against one another, and the quality of the solution is influenced by a wide range of hardware parameters. In particular, the reflectivities of imperfect beam splitters can lead to photon losses during routing, which must be traded off against losses at the input and output ports due to imperfect transmission rates. Since current compilers do not account for these effects, we propose the first efficient subcircuit compilation method that optimizes for the coincidence rate, the probability of successfully measuring all desired photons, by handling hardware imperfections. Our evaluations demonstrate significant improvement over existing methods in robustness against phase noise and significantly increased coincidence rates across all benchmarks of up to plus 33.2%.

Fri 11 SeptEmerging Technologies
The gist
Linear optical quantum computers use light to perform calculations, but imperfections in their parts cause errors that reduce reliability. The authors found that current methods for organizing smaller tasks inside these devices don't take hardware weaknesses into account, leading to lower success rates. They created a new way to place and connect these smaller tasks that specifically deals with these imperfections, improving the chance that all photons are detected correctly. Their tests show this method can significantly increase the success rate of computations across different setups.
Open → 2609.13379v1

Decoder timing reveals hardware identity and error rates in fault-tolerant quantum computers

Hardware Fingerprinting FTQC via Quantum Decoder Timing

Abstract: As the quantum computing field transitions toward Fault-Tolerant Quantum Computing (FTQC), intensive efforts are focused on scaling architectures and realizing active error correction. However, this shift introduces security surfaces that remain largely unexplored. Fault-tolerant quantum computers pair a quantum processor with a classical decoder that sits on the critical path of every syndrome-extraction round. For the first time, this work demonstrates that the wall-clock time each decoder takes to process a syndrome measurement and decoding round constitutes a novel, exploitable hardware side channel on physical quantum hardware. Using per-shot decoder timings from three IBM Heron processors collected over a 68-day window, the decode-time distribution alone allows a passive observer to (i) reconstruct the shot-by-shot detector-firing distribution and estimate the workload's logical error rate $p_L$, (ii) infer the code distance in use, and (iii) fingerprint the specific physical device with up to 89% accuracy (a random guess is 33%), with a pooled two-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov test confirming the decode-time distributions are statistically distinct. In noisy simulation inspired by public data from Google's 105-qubit Willow processor, decoder timing further distinguishes 9 surface-code patches at different locations on the chip with 81% accuracy, showing the side channel persists on below-threshold fault-tolerant hardware from a different vendor and code family.

Thu 10 SeptCryptography and Security
The gist
As quantum computers become more advanced and error-correcting, the time it takes to process error checks can unintentionally reveal information about the machine. The authors found that by measuring how long a classical decoder takes to analyze errors on quantum processors, someone can identify which device is in use, estimate how often errors occur, and even tell how the machine is set up. They tested this on multiple IBM quantum processors and a Google quantum chip simulator, showing the timing differences are consistent and unique enough to act as a fingerprint.
Open → 2609.12145v1

Quantum strategies solve blocked path puzzle in interferometers

The Quantum Plumber's Problem

Abstract: Recent work quantified the notion of quantum counterfactual gain for an extended Elitzur-Vaidman bomb test style scenario, through a connection to the negativity of the Kirkwood-Dirac quasiprobability distribution. We here extend this work to identifying quantum advantage in a new scenario, which we term the ``Quantum Plumber's Problem''. In this scenario, we imagine a ``quantum plumber'', who knows that one path of an interferometer is blocked, and wants to find the optimal strategy for identifying with certainty which path this is. We discuss various strategies for a generalised path-encoded interferometer, as well as for the specific case of Hofmann's three-path interferometer, introduced in a recent analysis of the relationship between states in five measurement contexts of a three level system. We support our arguments on the relative merit of competing strategies with data collected over many simulated attempts at locating blockages. We also present results for a variant of the game in which the blockage is replaced by a non-demolition detector.

Thu 10 SeptInformation Theory
The gist
The paper looks at a tricky problem where one path in a quantum setup is blocked, and someone called the "quantum plumber" wants to find out which path it is with certainty. The authors explore different ways to figure this out using special setups called interferometers, including a more complex one with three paths. They test their ideas by simulating many attempts and also study a version where the blockage is replaced by a detector that doesn't destroy the particle. This work helps show how quantum methods can be designed to solve these detection problems more effectively.
Open → 2609.11416v1

Quantum algorithm limits revealed for hypergraph max cut problems

The Quantum Overlap Gap Property and Algorithmic Hardness for the Quantum Hypergraph Max-Cut Problem

Abstract: In this work, we analyze the average-case hardness of approximation for the Quantum Hypergraph Max-Cut problem using the theoretical framework of the Quantum Overlap Gap Property (QOGP). We establish two main results. Our first result applies to a wide class of stable quantum algorithms, satisfying a Lipschitz property with respect to the quantum Wasserstein distance of order $2$. We show a weak hardness result, demonstrating that for any Lipschitz constant $L$, there is some $k$ such that $L$-stable algorithms cannot approximate the optimal solution to Quantum Hypergraph Max-Cut on $k$-uniform hypergraphs in the average case. Additionally, we establish a strong hardness result where $k$ is independent of $L$, but only for a more restricted class of local quantum algorithms defined using the quantum Wasserstein distance of order $\infty$. We apply these results to establish concrete depth lower bounds for popular quantum algorithms for preparing near-optimal states for this problem.

Wed 9 SeptComputational Complexity
The gist
Solving the Quantum Hypergraph Max-Cut problem means finding the best way to break a complex quantum system into parts. The authors studied why some popular quantum algorithms struggle to get close to the best solution, showing there are inherent limits depending on the algorithm’s properties. They used a mathematical tool called the Quantum Overlap Gap Property to prove that for many algorithms, especially those that are stable or local, it’s impossible to approximate the best answer well. This helps explain why some quantum methods can't easily solve these problems even on average.
Open → 2609.10838v1

Time frequency framework improves lattice gkp quantum code analysis

A Time-Frequency Framework for GKP Codes

Abstract: We develop a time--frequency framework for lattice GKP codes in which ideal codewords are realized in the modulation space $M^\infty$ and identified, through a vector-valued Zak transform, with a finite logical fibre over the continuous syndrome torus. Multi-window Gabor analysis then represents the logical vector by a finite block of adjoint-lattice coefficients. We prove that the normalized block map is an isometry, obtain an explicit recovering projection, and derive stable logical reconstruction. We further construct normalizable GKP approximants as lattice-envelope Gabor multipliers and establish weak-$*$ convergence and asymptotically isometric encoding. Finally, we recover displacement syndromes from phase relations between translated coefficient blocks and quantify their stability under additive perturbations.

Wed 9 SeptInformation Theory
The gist
Quantum error correction helps protect quantum information, but designing and analyzing these codes can be complex. The authors created a new mathematical framework using time and frequency concepts to better understand certain quantum codes called lattice GKP codes. Their approach allows for stable reconstruction of logical quantum information and helps detect error syndromes more reliably. This could make it easier to work with these codes for future quantum technologies.
Open → 2609.10802v1

Quantum memory efficiency depends on entanglement request patterns

The Sample Complexity of Quantum Entanglement Allocation

Abstract: How many past requests are needed to decide which qubits should share entanglement? We show that the answer depends on the allocation choices created by the queries: a larger memory can require no more data. The memory stores a classical bit and answers requests through a fixed detector that preserves coherence within each measured sector. For independent commuting $X$- and $Z$-type Pauli queries, we characterize the full attainable prediction-contrast region and construct encodings that preserve the bit at every nonzero vertex. With sharp reports, a $d$-qubit path and groups of at most $k$ qubits have minimax excess error after $m$ requests proportional to $k^{-1}\min\{1,\sqrt{d\log(k+1)/m}\}$, uniformly for $2\leq k<d$. Connected biclique regions can grow without increasing sample demand when depth, region count and connections per region stay bounded. Preparation noise introduces a separate calibration requirement. We derive an exact tradeoff with extra fresh detector calls and transfer the learning law to structured transaction co-location. Population-risk experiments test the statistical predictions. We also compare encodings on a native 15-qubit device and learned partitions on public purchase baskets. The full chain wins on the device; frequency grouping outperforms basket search in the largest-capacity retail setting.

Wed 9 SeptMachine Learning
The gist
This paper studies how much past information about quantum bits (qubits) is needed to decide which ones to connect with quantum entanglement. The authors find that the amount of memory required does not always increase with more data—it depends on how the entanglement choices are made. They analyze scenarios with special types of quantum questions and describe limits on prediction errors for different group sizes of qubits. They also explore how noise affects learning and test their findings with experiments on quantum devices and retail data.
Open → 2609.10141v1

Quantum codes with improved error correction distances found from finite field subsets

Quantum MDS codes from complements of unions of finite-field subsets

Abstract: Let $q$ be an odd prime power. We use complements of unions of subsets of $\mathbb F_{q^2}$ as locator sets and establish a sufficient condition under which a generalized Reed--Solomon (GRS) code is Hermitian self-orthogonal. Using cosets of multiplicative subgroups and sets with prescribed trace or norm values, we construct five families of Hermitian self-orthogonal GRS codes over $\mathbb F_{q^2}$. The Hermitian construction then yields five corresponding families of $q$-ary quantum maximum-distance-separable (MDS) codes. Under suitable parameter conditions, these quantum codes have minimum distances greater than $q/2+1$. By comparing codes of the same length, we give conditions under which our codes have strictly larger minimum distances than those obtainable from several previously known constructions based on trace maps, linear transformations, and cosets of multiplicative subgroups, either directly or via the propagation rule. We further show that such improvements occur for infinitely many values of $q$.

Wed 9 SeptInformation Theory
The gist
Quantum error-correcting codes help protect information in future quantum computers from mistakes. The authors found new ways to build better quantum codes using special sets of numbers from finite fields. Their method improves the minimum distance of the codes, meaning they can detect and fix more errors than some older codes. These improvements apply to many different quantum code sizes and conditions.
Open → 2609.09943v1

Quantum method finds better limits on approximate counting queries

Small-Bias Quantum Approximate Counting via the Multiplicative Adversary Method

Abstract: We study the two-weight decision version of quantum approximate counting: given oracle access to $x\in\{0,1\}^N$, distinguish $|x|=M$ from $|x|=M+Δ$ with success probability $1/2+ζ$. Using the multiplicative adversary method, we prove $Ω\left(\max\left\{ζ\sqrt{(N-M)(M+Δ)}/Δ,\sqrt{ζN/Δ}\right\}\right)$. The same parameter dependence follows from the polynomial-method characterization of the two-layer symmetric function by Podder, Yao, and Ye. Our contribution is a multiplicative-adversary derivation that tracks the progress produced by individual oracle queries. For the first term, after complementing the input if necessary, we assume $M+Δ\le N-M$. We use the Hamming-layer subspaces from the eigenspace method of Ambainis, Spalek, and de Wolf and compose their adjacent-layer unitary maps to relate the two nonadjacent promise layers. After fixing the queried coordinate, the analysis block-diagonalizes into four-dimensional subspaces. An exact calculation of the one-query progress ratio gives the first lower bound. The same estimate also implies $\left\|(I-\widehatΠ_{\mathrm{bad}})\lvertΨ^T\rangle\right\|^2=O\left(T^2Δ^2/((N-M)(M+Δ))\right)$ for the coherent input superposition used in the adversary argument. For the second term, we prove directly using a three-eigenvalue multiplicative adversary that unique OR on $n$ bits with success probability $1/2+ζ$ requires $Ω(\sqrt{ζn})$ queries, and then reduce unique OR to the two-weight counting problem.

Wed 9 SeptComputational Complexity
The gist
The paper tackles a quantum computing problem where you have to tell if a list of bits has a certain number of ones or just a few more. The authors used a mathematical method called the multiplicative adversary to figure out how many times a quantum algorithm must look at the list to decide this reliably. They improved our understanding by tracking each query’s progress, giving new lower bounds on the number of steps needed. This helps clarify the limits of quantum approximate counting.
Open → 2609.09804v1

Low-rank tensor method cuts quantum state estimation costs

A Block Tensor Train Burer-Monteiro Framework for Low-Rank Quantum State Tomography

Abstract: Quantum state tomography is a fundamental technique for estimating the state of a quantum system from measured data and plays a crucial role in evaluating the performance of quantum devices. However, standard estimation methods become computationally prohibitive as the system size increases due to the exponential growth of the density matrix, describing a quantum state, with the number of qubits. We propose a low-rank tensor-network framework for mixed-state quantum state tomography based on a block tensor train (Block-TT) factorization. Specifically, the density matrix is represented as the contraction of a Block-TT with its Hermitian transpose, yielding a TT analogue of the Burer-Monteiro factorization. This parameterization guarantees Hermiticity and positive semidefiniteness by construction while compressing the number of optimization variables from exponential to linear in the number of qubits. Building on this representation, we develop single-site and two-site density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) algorithms for estimating quantum states from compressed measurements. The resulting methods operate directly on the compressed parameterization, support adaptive rank refinement, and exploit efficient tensor-network contractions for expectation-value evaluation. The framework is applicable to a broad class of low-rank quantum states, including pure states, nearly pure states, and ground states that admit accurate tensor-network approximations. Numerical experiments demonstrate accurate state reconstruction from limited measurements together with substantial reductions in memory requirements and computational cost compared with conventional low-rank tomography methods.

Tue 8 SeptMachine Learning
The gist
Estimating the full state of a quantum system becomes extremely difficult as the system grows larger due to the huge size of the data involved. The authors introduce a way to compress this data using a special mathematical format called block tensor train, enabling faster and more memory-efficient estimation of quantum states. Their method ensures that key mathematical properties of quantum states are always preserved and allows for flexible adjustments during the calculation. Experiments show the approach can accurately reconstruct quantum states from fewer measurements, using significantly less computing resources.
Open → 2609.09457v1

Fault-tolerant quantum memories do not hide logical input from error logs

Execution-transcript privacy for fault-tolerant surface-code memories

Abstract: A fault-tolerant quantum computer runs behind a telemetry stream logging syndromes, decoder actions, resets and timing separately from the answer. Can it reveal the logical input? For a distance-$d$ rotated surface-code memory on a fixed schedule of $T=Θ(d)$ rounds, under three stated hypotheses (sector-scalar honest backbone, transcript locality, Kotecky-Preiss smallness), the channel from logical qubit to transcript is $e^{-Θ(d)}$-close in diamond norm to one that ignores the input. A statement of this kind follows generically from correctability-privacy duality. Anisotropy does not. Each logical axis pays the distance of its own coset, so under amplitude damping the computational-basis label is governed by the code's $Z$-distance $d_Z\ge d_{\min}$ and not by the code distance. Two codes of quantum distance $1$ make the gap concrete. A phase-flip code's $X$-syndrome transcript is exactly input-independent under unobserved damping, while a repetition code leaks at first order. A matched converse identifies the records that do expose it, among them a lattice-surgery parity readout. On a 156-qubit superconducting processor our sufficient certificate misses by $21.5\times$, so the theorem cannot be invoked there. Measured directly, a $d_Z=1$ memory's record identifies its input with total variation $\ge 0.927$ under randomised, label-balanced acquisition. Holding the code fixed and varying the damping exposure reproduces the parameter-free law, with exponent $0.85\pm0.03$ against a predicted $0.86$. Randomized encoding returns the statistic to the floor at no two-qubit-gate cost. Fault tolerance does not grant transcript privacy. It relocates it, and only to the logical state, not to the circuit's identity.

Tue 8 SeptCryptography and Security
The gist
Quantum computers running error-correcting codes produce detailed logs about errors and corrections during computation. The authors show that even with fault tolerance, the recorded data (transcripts) can leak information about the logical input stored in the quantum memory. They prove this leakage decreases exponentially with the code distance under certain technical conditions, but not always. Their experiments on a real quantum device confirm that some error processes reveal significant input information to these transcripts. The work clarifies when fault tolerance can and cannot keep logical data private from these error records.
Open → 2609.09334v1

Python framework enables fast quantum computing across CPUs GPUs and FPGAs

Python in the front, party in the Backline: compiling quantum workloads across CPUs, GPUs, and FPGAs

Abstract: Moving from quantum research and development to production-grade, fault-tolerant quantum workload execution remains one of the most significant challenges facing quantum platform builders. While Python frameworks have enabled an easy entry point for quantum algorithm design, the low-latency requirements for real-time quantum error correction (QEC) demand performance that traditional interpreted environments cannot provide. FPGAs and ASICs play a central role at these layers, but their specialized programming models make development rigid and time-consuming. CPUs, GPUs, and other accelerators introduce a different challenge: as infrastructure becomes increasingly heterogeneous, programming across different devices and their associated abstractions becomes more complex. Allowing researchers to write workloads in high-level languages that map to low-latency execution across diverse distributed target platforms will enable the development of key infrastructure for utility-scale quantum systems. For this, we introduce $\textit{Backline}$, a heterogeneous compilation and runtime framework built within PennyLane and Catalyst. Backline allows us to design and build quantum-classical workloads for high-performance and low-latency devices, with compilation directly from a Python interface through MLIR. We demonstrate the compilation and execution of several quantum workloads with low-latency data movement across a mix of CPUs, GPUs, and FPGAs, for both local and distributed remote hardware targets, all from a vendor-agnostic Python frontend. With an AMD VPK120 FPGA board as the controller, issuing each round from its hardware-handshake engine, we measured median steady-state round-trip latencies over RoCE v2 of $2.305~μ$s to an AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO CPU and $4.5~μ$s to an AMD Instinct MI210 GPU across $10^6-1$ rounds per path, demonstrating microsecond-scale synchronous co-processing.

Tue 8 SeptDistributed, Parallel, and Cluster ComputingProgramming Languages
The gist
Quantum computers need both smart software and fast hardware to run complex calculations reliably. The authors created Backline, a tool that lets programmers write quantum tasks in Python, which then run quickly on different hardware like CPUs, GPUs, and FPGAs. This helps combine easy coding with the speed needed for real-time quantum error correction. They showed their system could send and receive data in just a few microseconds between devices, which is important for future quantum machines.
Open → 2609.09270v1

Quantum error codes with new algebra rules extend fault tolerance

Quantum Matrix-Product Codes: CSS-T Characterization and Maximality

Abstract: CSS-T codes are quantum error-correcting codes that play an important role in fault-tolerant quantum computation, as they help mitigate the proliferation of errors. They admit a transversal T-gate and are defined from a pair of nested classical binary linear codes satisfying a specific algebraic condition expressed in terms of their Schur square. We extend this algebraic characterization to the propagation rule known as the $(u \mid u+v)$-construction, that is, the matrix-product code constructed from two constituent codes. Moreover, for cyclic constituent codes, we provide an explicit characterization in terms of the defining cyclotomic sets, which extends existing results for cyclic codes. This framework allows the construction of new and longer CSS-T codes.

Tue 8 SeptInformation Theory
The gist
Quantum computers need ways to protect information from errors caused by noise. The authors study a special kind of quantum error-correcting code called CSS-T codes that allow certain quantum operations to be done safely. They figured out how these codes behave when combined using a mathematical method called the matrix-product construction, especially for codes with cyclic patterns. This work helps build longer and potentially more powerful quantum error-correcting codes.
Open → 2609.08520v1

Transversal operations reduce communication in distributed quantum computing

Transversal Fanout for Fault Tolerant Distributed Quantum Computing: Analysis and Application

Abstract: We study a resource-efficient approach for implementing logical fanout operations in fault-tolerant distributed quantum computing using transversal operations on quantum error-correcting code blocks. Logical fanout, comprising multiple controlled-NOT operations from a common control qubit to target qubits located at remote nodes, is an important primitive for distributed quantum computation but can require substantial non-local communication when implemented directly between encoded blocks. We exploit the structure of encoded blocks and the availability of transversal logical operations to construct distributed fanout circuits that reduce the required non-local operations while preserving the logical action of the fanout operation. The construction is developed for encoded quantum information and illustrated using Bivariate Bicycle (BB)-code blocks. We analyze the resulting physical gate, entanglement, circuit-depth, and ancilla requirements. The approach provides a systematic method for implementing large logical fanout operations across distributed error-corrected quantum processors. Also, we study a distributed implementation of the global gate GCZ involving logical qubits (encoded using BB-code blocks), exploiting the concurrency in transversal distributed fanouts.

Tue 8 SeptDistributed, Parallel, and Cluster Computing
The gist
Fanout operations let one quantum bit control many others at different locations, but doing this safely and efficiently in error-corrected quantum computers is tricky and usually needs lots of communication between computers. The authors show a way to do these fanouts using special code properties and transversal gates that work across multiple quantum computers connected together. They test their ideas on a particular error-correcting code and analyze how many basic steps, entangled states, and helper qubits are needed. This helps make big fanout operations easier and more practical across separate quantum processors.
Open → 2609.08233v1

Improving qubit mapping for dynamic hierarchical quantum circuits

Mapping Dynamic, Hierarchical Quantum Circuits

Abstract: Qubit mapping is a critical pass in quantum compilation. Despite various advances, dynamic circuits, those exhibiting data dependent control-flow, often resulting from qubit measurements, are not yet supported by the vast majority of available qubit mappers. The crucial limitation to overcome is the dependence on flat, one-dimensional representations of circuits. Further, qubit mappers currently lack compiler abstractions that capture the hierarchical nature of circuits, hindering the qubit mapping process. In this paper, 1 we introduce a new qubit mapping method and analyses to tackle hierarchical dynamic circuits. Our novelty resides in four key aspects: modeling (statically) sub-circuits in disjoint control-flow paths, introducing a novel Qubit Reconciliation pass to maintain consistency between sub-circuit and control-flow boundaries, a loop-entry remapping pass, and a refined cost function enhanced for SWAP count, circuit depth, circuit latency and error. We demonstrate the efficiency of our approach on a wide range of dynamic circuits on two monolithic Quantum Processing Units of 127 and 156 qubits, and on chiplet hexagon-based QPUs. On monolithic QPUs, our qubit mapper improves the SWAP count by up to 52%, depth by up to 18%, latency by up to 18.6%, and error by up to 40%. On chiplet architectures, we achieve improvements of up to 36% on SWAP count, 8.7% on depth, 15% on latency, and 15% of error.

Tue 8 SeptProgramming Languages
The gist
Quantum computers perform calculations using quantum bits or qubits, which must be arranged efficiently to work well. Mapping qubits for circuits that change based on measurements and include many layers is difficult, and current methods do not handle this well. The authors introduce a new way to map these complicated, changing circuits more effectively by breaking them into smaller parts and ensuring consistent connections between these parts. This approach leads to fewer extra operations, shorter circuits, faster execution, and less error when tested on large quantum processors.
Open → 2609.08075v1

QAOA performance improved by error detection for better optimization results

Toward Fault-Tolerant Variational Optimization: QAOA under [[4,2,2]] Error Detection

Abstract: We present a partially fault-tolerant implementation of QAOA based on the $[[4,2,2]]$ error-detection code, targeting the Max-Cut problem on a square graph. Our main contribution is a novel ancilla-mediated logical $R_{ZZ}$ gate enabling interactions between qubits in different $[[4,2,2]]$ blocks. We evaluate unencoded and encoded circuits under five noise models, with both all-to-all and grid-routed connectivity, using the Cirq and qsimcirq frameworks with parallel CPU execution. Post-selection on stabilizer measurements consistently improves the probability of sampling optimal bitstrings, with five measurements providing the strongest benefit. These results support error-detection as a practical near-term strategy for improving the quality of variational quantum algorithms.

Mon 7 SeptEmerging Technologies
The gist
Quantum computers need to handle errors to work well. This paper shows how using a special error-detecting code can improve a quantum algorithm called QAOA, which tries to solve optimization problems. The authors designed a new way for parts of the computer to talk while checking for errors. Their tests suggest this error-detection method can help get better answers more often, making quantum optimization more reliable in the near future.
Open → 2609.07537v1

Asymmetric quantum error correction improves noise handling in quantum algorithms

Asymmetric quantum error correction efficiently tackles application-specific noise effects

Abstract: Noise is a major challenge for current quantum computers. It can be broadly categorized into bit-flip and phase-flip errors. These two types do not necessarily affect the executed algorithm, thus also the application, in the same way. We illustrate this general effect for the example of the quantum approximate optimization algorithm (QAOA) applied to a small instance of the flight-gate assignment (FGA) problem. We compare bit-flip and phase-flip Pauli noise under both layer-level and gate-level noise models, using two circuit decompositions of the same ideal QAOA unitary: a CNOT-based decomposition and a native-$R_{ZZ}$ decomposition. In the simulations, bit-flip noise produces the larger degradation in the performance of the quantum optimization. The asymmetry is most visible in the layer-level and native-$R_{ZZ}$ simulations. We explain this by how the errors affect mixing, final measurements, and how they propagate inside the circuit. We then exploit these insights to tackle noise particularly efficiently using asymmetric error-correcting codes. As an illustration, we use the quantum parity code (QPC), a generalization of the 9-qubit Shor code, and show that a smaller asymmetric code can achieve nearly the same improvement as a larger symmetric choice. This demonstrates that error-correction resources should be assigned not only according to physical error rates, but also according to how strongly each error channel affects the application. As a result, asymmetric quantum error correction proves useful even in cases where the noise model is symmetric. Finally, we discuss how information about the noise obtained through calibration can be exploited in our approach.

Mon 7 SeptEmerging Technologies
The gist
Quantum computers face errors that can flip bits or change phases, and these errors affect tasks differently. The authors studied a quantum optimization algorithm and found that bit-flip errors hurt its performance more than phase-flip errors. They showed that using error-correcting codes tailored to these differences can protect computations more efficiently. This approach even helps when the overall noise is balanced, by focusing resources on the more damaging error type.
Open → 2609.07235v1