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arXiv:1011.5535 · IEEE International Symposium on Information Theory (ISIT)

Examples of minimal-memory, non-catastrophic quantum convolutional encoders

Mark M. Wilde, Monireh Houshmand, Saied Hosseini-Khayat

Published Jul 1, 2011• 4 citations
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Abstract

One of the most important open questions in the theory of quantum convolutional coding is to determine a minimal-memory, non-catastrophic, polynomial-depth convolutional encoder for an arbitrary quantum convolutional code. Here, we present a technique that finds quantum convolutional encoders with such desirable properties for several example quantum convolutional codes (an exposition of our technique in full generality appears elsewhere). We first show how to encode the well-studied Forney-Grassl-Guha (FGG) code with an encoder that exploits just one memory qubit (the former Grassl-Rötteler encoder requires 15 memory qubits). We then show how our technique can find an online decoder corresponding to this encoder, and we also detail the operation of our technique on a different example of a quantum convolutional code. Finally, the reduction in memory for the FGG encoder makes it feasible to simulate the performance of a quantum turbo code employing it, and we present the results of such simulations.

DOI
10.1109/isit.2011.6034166

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One of the most important open questions in the theory of quantum convolutional coding is to determine a minimal-memory, non-catastrophic, polynomial-depth convolutional encoder for an arbitrary quantum convolutional code. Here, we present a technique that finds quantum convolutional encoders with such desirable properties for several example quantum convolutional codes (an exposition of our technique in full generality appears elsewhere). We first show how to encode the well-studied Forney-Grassl-Guha (FGG) code with an encoder that exploits just one memory qubit (the former Grassl-Rötteler encoder requires 15 memory qubits). We then show how our technique can find an online decoder corresponding to this encoder, and we also detail the operation of our technique on a different example of a quantum convolutional code. Finally, the reduction in memory for the FGG encoder makes it feasible to simulate the performance of a quantum turbo code employing it, and we present the results of such simulations.
Quantum convolutional coding is a technique for encoding a stream of quantum information before transmitting it over a noisy quantum channel. Two important goals in the design of quantum convolutional encoders are to minimize the memory required by them and to avoid the catastrophic propagation of errors. In a previous paper, we determined minimal-memory, noncatastrophic, polynomial-depth encoders for a few exemplary quantum convolutional codes. In this paper, we elucidate a general technique for finding an encoder of an arbitrary quantum convolutional code such that the encoder possesses these desirable properties. We also provide an elementary proof that these encoders are nonrecursive. Finally, we apply our technique to many quantum convolutional codes from the literature.
Quantum convolutional coding is a technique for encoding a stream of quantum information before transmitting it over a noisy quantum channel. Two important goals in the design of quantum convolutional encoders are to minimize the memory required by them and to avoid the catastrophic propagation of errors. In a previous paper, we determined minimal-memory, noncatastrophic, polynomial-depth encoders for a few exemplary quantum convolutional codes. In this paper, we elucidate a general technique for finding an encoder of an arbitrary quantum convolutional code such that the encoder possesses these desirable properties. We also provide an elementary proof that these encoders are nonrecursive. Finally, we apply our technique to many quantum convolutional codes from the literature. © 1963-2012 IEEE.
Quantum convolutional codes can be used to protect streams of quantum bits against errors when sending them along a quantum channel.We review the underlying error model, conditions for quantum convolutional codes, and present a product code construction that yields families of quantum convolutional codes.Concerning the structure of encoding circuits for general quantum convolutional codes, we review the notion of catastrophic errors and show that each quantum convolutional code has encoders which are non-catastrophic, i. e., which have good error propagation properties.We present an algorithm to compute a quantum circuit which can be used to perform non-catastrophic encoding and inverse encoding in constant depth and give several examples for illustration.
An unexpected breakdown in the existing theory of quantum serial turbo coding is that a quantum convolutional encoder cannot simultaneously be recursive and non-catastrophic. These properties are essential for quantum turbo code families to have a minimum distance growing with blocklength and for their iterative decoding algorithm to converge, respectively. Here, we show that the entanglement-assisted paradigm simplifies the theory of quantum turbo codes, in the sense that an entanglement-assisted quantum (EAQ) convolutional encoder can possess both of the aforementioned desirable properties. We give several examples of EAQ convolutional encoders that are both recursive and non-catastrophic and detail their relevant parameters. We then modify the quantum turbo decoding algorithm of Poulin , in order to have the constituent decoders pass along only extrinsic information to each other rather than a posteriori probabilities as in the decoder of Poulin , and this leads to a significant improvement in the performance of unassisted quantum turbo codes. Other simulation results indicate that entanglement-assisted turbo codes can operate reliably in a noise regime 4.73 dB beyond that of standard quantum turbo codes, when used on a memoryless depolarizing channel. Furthermore, several of our quantum turbo codes are within 1 dB or less of their hashing limits, so that the performance of quantum turbo codes is now on par with that of classical turbo codes. Finally, we prove that entanglement is the resource that enables a convolutional encoder to be both non-catastrophic and recursive because an encoder acting on only information qubits, classical bits, gauge qubits, and ancilla qubits cannot simultaneously satisfy them.
We present an algorithm to construct quantum circuits for encoding and inverse encoding of quantum convolutional codes. We show that any quantum convolutional code contains a subcode of finite index which has a non-catastrophic encoding circuit. Our work generalizes the conditions for non-catastrophic encoders derived in a paper by Oliver and Tillich (quant-ph/0401134) which are applicable only for a restricted class of quantum convolutional codes We also show that the encodes and their inverse constructed by our method naturally can be applied online, i.e., qubits can be sent and received with constant delay
We present a theory of quantum serial turbo-codes and study their performance numerically on a depolarization channel. These codes can be considered as a generalization of classical serial turbo-codes. As their classical cousins, they can be iteratively decoded and with well chosen constituent convolutional codes, we observe an important reduction of the word error rate as the number of encoded qubits increases. Our construction offers several advantages over quantum LDPC codes. First, the Tanner graph used for decoding can be chosen to be free of 4-cycles that deteriorate the performances of iterative decoding. Secondly, the iterative decoder makes explicit use of the code's degeneracy. Finally, there is complete freedom in the code design in terms of length, rate, memory size, and interleaver choice. We address two issues related to the encoding of convolutional codes that are directly relevant for turbo-codes, namely the character of being recursive and non-catastrophic. We define a quantum analogue of a state diagram that provides an efficient way to verify these properties on a given quantum convolutional encoder. Unfortunately, we also prove that all recursive quantum convolutional encoder have catastrophic error propagation. In our constructions, the convolutional codes have thus been chosen to be non-catastrophic and non-recursive. While the resulting families of turbo-codes have bounded minimum distance, from a pragmatic point of view the effective minimum distances of the codes that we have simulated are large enough for not degrading iterative decoding performance up to reasonable word error rates and block sizes.