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arXiv:1303.3432 · Scientific Reports

Discrete-time quantum walk with feed-forward quantum coin

Yutaka Shikano, Tatsuaki Wada, Junsei Horikawa

Published Mar 21, 2014• 48 citations
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Abstract

Constructing a discrete model like a cellular automaton is a powerful method for understanding various dynamical systems. However, the relationship between the discrete model and its continuous analogue is, in general, nontrivial. As a quantum-mechanical cellular automaton, a discrete-time quantum walk is defined to include various quantum dynamical behavior. Here we generalize a discrete-time quantum walk on a line into the feed-forward quantum coin model, which depends on the coin state of the previous step. We show that our proposed model has an anomalous slow diffusion characterized by the porous-medium equation, while the conventional discrete-time quantum walk model shows ballistic transport.

DOI
10.1038/srep04427

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Constructing a discrete model like a cellular automaton is a powerful method for understanding various dynamical systems. However, the relationship between the discrete model and its continuous analogue is, in general, nontrivial. As a quantum-mechanical cellular automaton, a discrete-time quantum walk is defined to include various quantum dynamical behavior. Here we generalize a discrete-time quantum walk on a line into the feed-forward quantum coin model, which depends on the coin state of the previous step. We show that our proposed model has an anomalous slow diffusion characterized by the porous-medium equation, while the conventional discrete-time quantum walk model shows ballistic transport.
I obtain the dynamics of the continuous time quantum walk on a d-dimensional lattice, with periodic boundary conditions, as an appropriate limit of the dynamics of the discrete time quantum walk on the same lattice. This extends the main result of [8] which proved this limit for the case of the quantum walk on the infinite line and the quantum cellular automaton proposed in [1]. By highlighting the main features of the limiting procedure, I then extend it to general graphs. For a given discrete time quantum walk on a general graph, I single out the type of continuous dynamics (Hamiltonians) that can be obtained as a limit of the discrete time dynamics. 1 Generalities on quantum walks; continuous and discrete time Consider a graph G: = {V, E} with a set of vertices V of cardinality N and a set of edges E. We assume G to be undirected and without self-loops. In the interval of time ∆t a certain fraction γ∆t of a quantity pj leaves the location of the j-th vertex to move to a neighboring vertex k. The quantity pj, j = 1,..., N, at time t + ∆t is given by 1 pj(t + ∆t) = pj(t) − deg (j)γ∆tpj(t) + ∑ (k,j)∈E γ∆tpk(t). (1) Define ⃗p the N−vector whose components are the pj’s quantities, and L the Laplacian matrix defined by Ljj = − deg (j), Ljk = 1 if (j, k) ∈ E and Ljk = 0 otherwise. L is
We show that the Dirac quantum cellular automaton [A. Bisio, G. M. D'Ariano, and A. Tosini, Ann. Phys. (N.Y.) 354, 244 (2015)] shares many properties in common with the discrete-time quantum walk. These similarities can be exploited to study the automaton as a unitary process that takes place at regular time steps on a one-dimensional lattice, in the spirit of general quantum cellular automata. In this way, it becomes an alternative to the quantum walk, with a dispersion relation that can be controlled by a parameter that plays a similar role to the coin angle in the quantum walk. The Dirac Hamiltonian is recovered under a suitable limit. We provide two independent analytical approximations to the long-term probability distribution. It is shown that, starting from localized conditions, the asymptotic value of the entropy of entanglement between internal and motional degrees of freedom overcomes the known limit that is approached by the quantum walk for the same initial conditions and is similar to the ones achieved by highly localized states of the Dirac equation.
A discrete-time quantum walk (QW) is essentially a unitary operator driving the evolution of a single particle on the lattice. Some QWs have familiar physics PDEs as their continuum limit. Some slight generalization of them (allowing for prior encoding and larger neighbourhoods) even have the curved spacetime Dirac equation, as their continuum limit. In the (1+1)− dimensional massless case, this equation decouples as scalar transport equations with tunable speeds. We characterise and construct all those QWs that lead to scalar transport with tunable speeds. The local coin operator dictates that speed; we provide concrete techniques to tune the speed of propagation, by making use only of a finite number of coin operators-differently from previous models, in which the speed of propagation depends upon a continuous parameter of the quantum coin. The interest of such a discretization is twofold : to allow for easier experimental implementations on the one hand, and to evaluate ways of quantizing the metric field, on the other.
We show that a quantum-state transfer, previously studied as a continuous-time process in networks of interacting spins, can be achieved within the model of discrete-time quantum walks with a position-dependent coin. We argue that, due to additional degrees of freedom, discrete-time quantum walks allow one to observe effects which cannot be observed in the corresponding continuous-time case. First, we study a discrete-time version of the engineered coupling protocol due to Christandl et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 187902 (2004)] and then we discuss the general idea of conversion between continuous-time quantum walks and discrete-time quantum walks.
In this work we introduce discrete-time quantum walks in state space, more precisely on Fock-state lattices. Fock-state lattices provide a natural and clean setting for implementing lattice models, particularly in quantum optical systems. Thus, contrary to the common setting where the walker resides in real space or phase space, here the walk takes place in a synthetic space. We present a general formalism based on Lie algebras and their properties. For each Lie algebra one can associate both a phase space and a Fock-state lattice, and by understanding how these spaces are related, together with the action of generalized displacement operators, we construct the discrete unitary operator that generates the walk. In this framework the displacement operators replace the usual nearest-neighbor shifts and lead to state-dependent tunneling on the lattice. By considering several examples we demonstrate ballistic spreading and other characteristic features of discrete-time quantum walks, such as coin-walker entanglement and symmetry-induced interference patterns. We also show that different algebraic structures can give rise to qualitatively different dynamics, including anomalous behavior such as super-ballistic spreading as well as localization effects.