The one-clean-qubit model (or the deterministic quantum computation with one quantum bit model) is a restricted model of quantum computing where all but a single input qubits are maximally mixed. It is known that the probability distribution of measurement results on three output qubits of the one-clean-qubit model cannot be classically efficiently sampled within a constant multiplicative error unless the polynomial-time hierarchy collapses to the third level [T. Morimae, K. Fujii, and J. F. Fitzsimons, Phys. Rev. Lett. 112, 130502 (2014)PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.112.130502]. It was open whether we can keep the no-go result while reducing the number of output qubits from three to one. Here, we solve the open problem affirmatively. We also show that the third-level collapse of the polynomial-time hierarchy can be strengthened to the second-level one. The strengthening of the collapse level from the third to the second also holds for other subuniversal models such as the instantaneous quantum polynomial model [M. Bremner, R. Jozsa, and D. J. Shepherd, Proc. R. Soc. A 467, 459 (2011)PRLAAZ1364-502110.1098/rspa.2010.0301] and the boson sampling model [S. Aaronson and A. Arkhipov, STOC 2011, p. 333]. We additionally study the classical simulatability of the one-clean-qubit model with further restrictions on the circuit depth or the gate types.
The one-clean-qubit model (or the deterministic quantum computation with one quantum bit model) is a restricted model of quantum computing where all but a single input qubits are maximally mixed. It is known that the probability distribution of measurement results on three output qubits of the one-clean-qubit model cannot be classically efficiently sampled within a constant multiplicative error unless the polynomial-time hierarchy collapses to the third level [T. Morimae, K. Fujii, and J. F. Fitzsimons, Phys. Rev. Lett. 112, 130502 (2014)PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.112.130502]. It was open whether we can keep the no-go result while reducing the number of output qubits from three to one. Here, we solve the open problem affirmatively. We also show that the third-level collapse of the polynomial-time hierarchy can be strengthened to the second-level one. The strengthening of the collapse level from the third to the second also holds for other subuniversal models such as the instantaneous quantum polynomial model [M. Bremner, R. Jozsa, and D. J. Shepherd, Proc. R. Soc. A 467, 459 (2011)PRLAAZ1364-502110.1098/rspa.2010.0301] and the boson sampling model [S. Aaronson and A. Arkhipov, STOC 2011, p. 333]. We additionally study the classical simulatability of the one-clean-qubit model with further restrictions on the circuit depth or the gate types.
The one-clean qubit model (or the DQC1 model) is a restricted model of quantum computing where only a single qubit of the initial state is pure and others are maximally mixed. Although the model is not universal, it can efficiently solve several problems whose classical efficient solutions are not known. Furthermore, it was recently shown that if the one-clean qubit model is classically efficiently simulated, the polynomial hierarchy collapses to the second level. A disadvantage of the one-clean qubit model is, however, that the clean qubit is too clean: for example, in realistic NMR experiments, polarizations are not high enough to have the perfectly pure qubit. In this paper, we consider a more realistic one-clean qubit model, where the clean qubit is not clean, but depolarized. We first show that, for any polarization, a multiplicative-error calculation of the output probability distribution of the model is possible in a classical polynomial time if we take an appropriately large multiplicative error. The result is in strong contrast with that of the ideal one-clean qubit model where the classical efficient multiplicative-error calculation (or even the sampling) with the same amount of error causes the collapse of the polynomial hierarchy. We next show that, for any polarization lower-bounded by an inverse polynomial, a classical efficient sampling (in terms of a sufficiently small multiplicative error or an exponentially small additive error) of the output probability distribution of the model is impossible unless BQP (bounded error quantum polynomial time) is contained in the second level of the polynomial hierarchy, which suggests the hardness of the classical efficient simulation of the one nonclean qubit model.
The one-clean-qubit model (or the DQC1 model) is a restricted model of quantum computing where only a single input qubit is pure and all other input qubits are maximally mixed. In spite of the severe restriction, the model can solve several problems (such as calculating Jones polynomials) whose classical efficient solutions are not known. Furthermore, it was shown that if the output probability distribution of the one-clean-qubit model can be classically efficiently sampled with a constant multiplicative error, then the polynomial hierarchy collapses to the second level. Is it possible to improve the multiplicative error hardness result to a constant total variation distance error one like other subuniversal quantum computing models such as the IQP (Instantaneous Quantum Polynomial time) model, the boson sampling model, and the Fourier sampling model? In this paper we show that it is indeed possible if we accept a modified version of the average case hardness conjecture. Interestingly, the anticoncentration lemma can be easily shown by using the special property of the one-clean-qubit model that each output probability is so small that no concentration occurs.
Deterministic quantum computation with one quantum bit (DQC1), or the one clean qubit model, [E. Knill and R. Laflamme, Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf81}, 5672 (1998)] is a model of quantum computing where the input is the tensor product of a single pure qubit and many completely-mixed states, and only the single qubit is measured at the end of the computation. In spite of its naive appearance, the DQC1 model can efficiently solve some problems for which no classical efficient algorithms are known, and therefore it has been conjectured that the DQC1 model is more powerful than classical computing (under the assumption of $\mbox{BPP}\subsetneq\mbox{BQP}$). Here we show that the output probability distribution of the DQC1 model cannot be classically efficiently approximated (exactly within a polynomial bit length or in the fully polynomial randomized approximation scheme (FPRAS) with at most a constant error) unless $\mbox{BQP}\subseteq\mbox{BPP}$.
We study quantum communication protocols, in which the players' storage starts out in a state where one qubit is in a pure state, and all other qubits are totally mixed (i.e. in a random state), and no other storage is available (for messages or internal computations). This restriction on the available quantum memory has been studied extensively in the model of quantum circuits, and it is known that classically simulating quantum circuits operating on such memory is hard when the additive error of the simulation is exponentially small (in the input length), under the assumption that the polynomial hierarchy does not collapse. We study this setting in communication complexity. The goal is to consider larger additive error for simulation-hardness results, and to not use unproven assumptions. We define a complexity measure for this model that takes into account that standard error reduction techniques do not work here. We define a clocked and a semi-unclocked model, and describe efficient simulations between those. We characterize a one-way communication version of the model in terms of weakly unbounded error communication complexity. Our main result is that there is a quantum protocol using one clean qubit only and using O(log n) qubits of communication, such that any classical protocol simulating the acceptance behaviour of the quantum protocol within additive error 1/poly(n) needs communication Ω(n). We also describe a candidate problem, for which an exponential gap between the one-clean-qubit communication complexity and the randomized communication complexity is likely to hold, and hence a classical simulation of the one-clean-qubit model within constant additive error might be hard in communication complexity. We describe a geometrical conjecture that implies the lower bound.
Blind quantum computing enables a client, who can only generate or measure single-qubit states, to delegate quantum computing to a remote quantum server in such a way that the input, output, and program are hidden from the server. It is an open problem whether a completely classical client can delegate quantum computing blindly (in the information theoretic sense). In this paper, we show that if a completely classical client can blindly delegate sampling of subuniversal models, such as the DQC1 model and the IQP model, then the polynomial-time hierarchy collapses to the third level. Our delegation protocol is the one where the client first sends a polynomial-length bit string to the server and then the server returns a single bit to the client. Generalizing the no-go result to more general setups is an open problem.
It is known that several sub-universal quantum computing models, such as the IQP model, the Boson sampling model, the one-clean qubit model, and the random circuit model, cannot be classically simulated in polynomial time under certain conjectures in classical complexity theory. Recently, these results have been improved to ``fine-grained" versions where even exponential-time classical simulations are excluded assuming certain classical fine-grained complexity conjectures. All these fine-grained results are, however, about the hardness of strong simulations or multiplicative-error sampling. It was open whether any fine-grained quantum supremacy result can be shown for a more realistic setup, namely, additive-error sampling. In this paper, we show the additive-error fine-grained quantum supremacy (under certain complexity assumptions). As examples, we consider the IQP model, a mixture of the IQP model and log-depth Boolean circuits, and Clifford+ T circuits. Similar results should hold for other sub-universal models.