China

Recently, there has been much interest in the efficient preparation of complex quantum states using low-depth quantum circuits, such as Quantum Approximate Optimization Algorithm (QAOA). While it has been numerically shown that such algorithms prepare certain correlated states of quantum spins with surprising accuracy, a systematic way of quantifying the efficiency of QAOA in general classes of models has been lacking. Here, we propose that the success of QAOA in preparing ordered states is related to the interaction distance of the target state, which measures how close that state is to the manifold of all Gaussian states in an arbitrary basis of single-particle modes. We numerically verify this for the ground state of the quantum Ising model with arbitrary transverse and longitudinal field strengths, a canonical example of a non-integrable model. Our results suggest that the structure of the entanglement spectrum, as witnessed by the interaction distance, correlates with the success of QAOA state preparation. We conclude that QAOA typically finds a solution that perturbs around the closest free-fermion state.

Quantum 2020

Quantifying the efficiency of state preparation via quantum variational eigensolvers

state preparation

ising model

qaoa

**BQIT is a three day annual workshop** aimed at enabling leading UK and international academics and industrial partners to come together; to explore and discuss future ambitions and challenges in the field of **Quantum Information Technologies.** Since our conception in 2014 we have had 230 speakers and panellists who have presented their work and opinions on a range of topics, from quantum theory to innovation in industry.


### Welcome Message
The BQIT:21 team welcomes you to the eighth Bristol Quantum Information Technologies workshop! 

Last year was the first time in our workshop's history that we had gone fully virtual. The global circumstances that continue to impact us all professionally and personally have forced BQIT once again to be delivered as an all-virtual workshop for 2021. The access this creates to colleagues across the world who would otherwise be unable to join us, as well as being able to make the workshop free for all attendees due to the lower costs involved in delivering an online workshop, are just a couple of the extraordinary benefits of meeting online. This also means that we can welcome three times as many attendees to BQIT than previous years.   

We take this opportunity to thank each of our speakers and poster presenters for contributing their technical content, this year's sponsors, whose support this year enabled BQIT:21 to be free to all attendees, and to all of our attendees for joining us online this year. We recognise the extra energy required to stay connected and motivated during these difficult times, and are hugely encouraged to see so many of you willing to continue to connect with us on an online platform. 

It is our hope that you have a productive and enjoyable time while you engage and interact with BQIT:21, and to everyone that has helped take BQIT:21 online, thank you! 

**The BQIT board and organisation team **


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### This year's workshop agenda is available here: [Virtual BQIT:21](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QwsSM0ztnxC_lgUKf3TbO3GvnI44AQkY/view?usp=sharing)
For further information, please contact us at: **bqit-admin@bristol.ac.uk**

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Bristol Quantum Information Technologies Workshop

poster

The Institute of Physics and IOP Publishing, in partnership with the Chinese Physical Society (CPS) and the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) are proud to have brought together the international quantum science community online for this inaugural conference.


Early career and leading researchers from universities, industry and government worldwide came together to share, learn and collaborate on the latest research and emerging areas of high interest across quantum science and technology. The broad themes covered by Quantum 2020 included:

Quantum communication;
Quantum computing and quantum simulation;
Quantum sensing, metrology and imaging;
Quantum information theory, software and algorithms;
Quantum foundations;
Quantum technology in industry.
The four-day event featured talks from world-renowned scientists, interactive poster sessions and two exciting panel discussions on the themes of Quantum Technology in Industry and Quantum Technology Programmes Around the World.


You will need to [register](https://www.iopconferences.org/iop/frontend/reg/tRegisterEmailNew.csp?pageID=978403&eventID=1552&tempPersonID=536224) to obtain a ticket. . If you have already registered you should have been sent an email from Underline (to the email address that you registered with) with the subject line ‘Welcome to Quantum 2020’. This email includes your ticket for the event. 

If you have a ticket and are experiencing problems in accessing the event, please contact us. 

The Institute of Physics and IOP Publishing, in partnership with the Chinese Physical Society (CPS) and the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) are proud to have brought together the international quantum science community online for this inaugural conference.

Early career and leading researchers from universities, industry and government worldwide came together to share, learn and collaborate on the latest research and emerging areas of high interest across quantum science and technology. 

Memory effects in the dynamics of open systems have been the subject of significant interest in the last decades. The methods involved in quantifying this effect, however, are often difficult to compute and may lack analytical insight. With this in mind, we study collisional models} where non-Markovianity is introduced by means of additional interactions between neighboring environmental units. 
We show that the dynamics can be cast in terms of a Markovian Embedding of the covariance matrix, which yields closed-form expressions for the memory kernel that governs the dynamics, a quantity that can seldom be computed analytically. 
The same is also possible for a divisibility monotone, based on the complete positivity of intermediate maps. By focusing on continuous-variables Gaussian dynamics, we are able to analytically study models of arbitrary size. 
We analyze in detail two types of interactions, a beam-splitter implementing a partial SWAP and a two-mode squeezing, which entangles the ancillas and, at the same time, feeds excitations into the system. By analyzing the memory kernel and divisibility for these two representative scenarios, our results help to shed light on the intricate mechanisms behind memory effects in the quantum domain.

Memory Kernel and CP-Divisibility in Gaussian Collisional Models

The intrinsic random nature of quantum physics offers novel tools for the generation of random numbers. However, verifying that a device is actually exploiting quantum effects to generate randomness is an elusive task.
In this work, we adopt a device-independent approach, i.e. without assumptions on the measurement and state-generation, to generate certified randomness, exploiting a particular class of processes, called instrumental scenario.
First, we theoretically show that certified random bits, private against general quantum adversaries, can be extracted exploiting quantum instrumental-inequality violations. Then, we experimentally implement the corresponding randomness-generation protocol using entangled photons and active feed-forward of information.

Experimental device-independent certified randomness generation with an instrumental causal structure

Both adiabatic quantum computers, and algorithms for gate-based quantum computers are able to address the solution of quadratic unconstrained binary optimization (QUBO) problems. This allows the use of quantum technology to solve combinatorial optimization (COPT) problems such as the Ising model and the max-cut problem which have a natural QUBO reformulation. Moreover, quantum technology can be used to solve a wider class of constrained COPT problems thanks to the use of penalization methods to embed the COPT problem’s constraints in its objective to obtain the problem’s QUBO reformulation. However, the particular way in which this penalization is carried out affects the value of the penalty coefficients, as well as the number of additional binary variables that are needed to obtain the desired QUBO reformulation. In turn, these factors substantially affect the ability of quantum computers to efficiently solve these constrained COPT problems. This efficiency is key towards the goal of using quantum computers to solve constrained COPT problems more efficiently than with classical computers. Along these lines, we consider an important constrained COPT problem; namely, the maximum k-colorable subgraph (MkCS) problem, in which the aim is to find an induced k-colorable subgraph with maximum cardinality in a given graph. This problem arises in channel assignment in spectrum sharing networks, VLSI design, human genetic research, and cyber security. We derive two QUBO reformulations for the MkCS problem, and fully characterize the range of the penalty coefficients that can be used in the QUBO reformulation. Further, one of the QUBO reformulation of the MkCS problem is obtained without the need to introduce additional binary variables. To illustrate the beneﬁts of obtaining and characterizing these QUBO reformulations, we benchmark different QUBO reformulations of the MkCS problem using an adiabatic quantum device.

Characterization of QUBO reformulations for the maximum k-colorable subgraph problem

The corpus of scientific literature grows at an ever increasing speed. While this poses a severe challenge for human researchers, computer algorithms with access to a large body of knowledge could help make important contributions to science. Here, we demonstrate the development of a semantic network for quantum physics, denoted SemNet, using 750,000 scientific papers and knowledge from books and Wikipedia. We use it in conjunction with an artificial neural network for predicting future research trends. Individual scientists can use SemNet for suggesting and inspiring personalized, out-of-the-box ideas. Computer-inspired scientific ideas will play a significant role in accelerating scientific progress, and we hope that our work directly contributes to that important goal.

Predicting Research Trends with Semantic and Neural Networks with an application in Quantum Physics

Levitation of microparticles in the Meissner state has been recently proposed as a novel experimental platform for performing quantum experiments and for high precision gravimetry, profiting from the extreme isolation of a levitated superconducting particle from its environment. In our work, we present first steps in this direction.

We present a detailed analysis of two chip-based superconducting trap architectures capable of levitating microparticles in the Meissner state. To this end, we implement the Maxwell-London equations and ad-hoc flux quantization in our FEM modeling to account for magnetic field penetration, demagnetizing effects and flux quantization, as well as the 3D geometry of the magnetic traps. We show that frequencies of 10-500Hz and tenths of kHz are achievable for planar and 3D traps, respectively, and that the center-of-mass (COM) motion of the levitated microparticles can be detected by a DC-SQUID magnetometer, in principle, even at their ground state of motion, which allows for COM motion control and cooling.

We further demonstrate the fabrication of on-chip superconducting magnetic traps made of Nb, as well as fabrication of microparticles of various superconducting materials and shapes, and present the results of levitation experiments in various magnetic traps.


Towards chip-based superconducting levitation of micrometer-sized particles in the Meissner state for macroscopic quantum experiments

Quantum random number generators (QRNG) provide a strong assurance for the quality of the generated random numbers by using the intrinsic, indeterministic nature of quantum systems. In practise, a subtle correlation gone undetected is enough to greatly compromise the security of an RNG. This is especially so with the advent of state-of-art machine learning (ML) techniques. An adversary familiar with ML techniques could potentially use them to gain much more information about a seemingly random source, causing a significant risk for security.

In this presentation, we turn ML techniques from being a potential adversary to a powerful tool for the diagnostics of a QRNG. We demonstrate the capability of ML in finding correlations in a random source, thereby making first steps in establishing ML as a diagnostic tool. To this end, we inspect the classical and the quantum entropy sources in a vacuum fluctuation based QRNG using ML technique. Alongside existing NIST statistical tests, we discover that even a statistically-sound PRNG can be considered non-uniform under the scrutiny of ML techniques.

Benchmarking a Quantum Random Number Generator with Machine Learning

Combinatorial optimization problems are known to be notoriously difficult to solve, even approximately. In this talk, we will present a general framework for performing continuous-time quantum walks over feasible solutions to a wide range of combinatorial optimization problems, which works by ‘steering’ the quantum amplitude into high-quality solutions. Prior work in this area has involved painstakingly designing a unique ‘mixer’ separately for each combinatorial problem under consideration. In contrast, we will describe a novel way to find a highly efficient quantum circuit that holds the promise of finding practically useful solutions to a wide range of NP-hard combinatorial problems, such as the Travelling Salesman Problem, maximum set splitting, graph partitioning, and lattice path optimization.

Combinatorial optimization via highly efficient quantum walks

In this talk, I will discuss a brief review of graphene clean with the Rashab SOC platform and the main results which we obtained in our recently published paper Phys. Rev. B 102, 041403 (2020). In this work, we computed the concurrence to get the intraparticle entanglement between spin and pseudospin. Here we take into count the single-particle limit in a ballistic quantum spin transport. We showed that any random initial state completely separable, a large amount of intraparticle entanglement could be generated. We simulated the violation of Bell inequality for any separable random initial state. This way, the intraparticle entanglement could be manipulated and generated in a laboratory using Dirac matter as a physical platform.


Intra-Particle Entanglement and Bell's Inequality in Dirac Matter

A new and universal theoretical approach to the dynamics of the transient state in elementary physico-chemical processes, called quantum-classical mechanics (QCM), is introduced to a wide general readership. The efficacy of QCM approach is shown by different QCM applications, in particular, by applications of the so-called Egorov resonance to optical spectra in polymethine dyes and J-aggregates both for single-photon and two-photon processes, which, in particular, are rationalizing experimental studies in the field of bioimaging and photodynamic therapy. Prospects for further developments in QCM and their applications to problems of cancer and viral infections are discussed.

Quantum-Classical Mechanics: Principles, Applications, and Prospects

Quantum Acoustic has gained rapid development since the pioneering work done by Gustafsson et.al (Science, 2014, 346(6206)). Considering the high frequency and low velocity of SAW, the quantum acoustic circuit can be compact and scalable.
Many Experiments have observed and investigated the coupling of SAW and Qubit. However, few studies have given a detailed description of the quantum property of SAW and its coupling with Superconducting Qubit theoretically. To fill this gap, our work contains two parts, the Quantization of SAW Waveguide and the coupling model of SAW and Transmon Qubit.
The first step is to do the quantization, we focus on the Rayleigh mode of the SAW waveguide and derive the quantized motion function and piezoelectrical potential function following J.I. Cirac et.al, which applies to SAW on weak piezoelectrical material (like GaAs).
Combing the potential distribution on the substrate, we model the coupling of SAW and Qubits as the potential charges of the IDT capacitance of the circuit. Hamiltonian of the model is derived and the numerical result from the experiment matches well with the prediction.
The next step is to build the model for SAW on a strong piezoelectrical substrate (like LiNbO3), which is an attractive choice for Quantum Acoustic Circuit.


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Memory Kernel and CP-Divisibility in Gaussian Collisional Models

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Quantifying the efficiency of state preparation via quantum variational eigensolvers

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