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arXiv:1601.07256 · Scientific Reports

Discrimination of two-qubit unitaries via local operations and classical communication

Joonwoo Bae

Published Dec 15, 2015• 15 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Distinguishability is a fundamental and operational measure generally connected to information applications. In quantum information theory, from the postulates of quantum mechanics it often has an intrinsic limitation, which then dictates and also characterises capabilities of related information tasks. In this work, we consider discrimination between bipartite two-qubit unitary transformations by local operations and classical communication (LOCC) and its relations to entangling capabilities of given unitaries. We show that a pair of entangling unitaries which do not contain local parts, if they are perfectly distinguishable by global operations, can also be perfectly distinguishable by LOCC. There also exist non-entangling unitaries, e.g. local unitaries, that are perfectly discriminated by global operations but not by LOCC. The results show that capabilities of LOCC are strictly restricted than global operations in distinguishing bipartite unitaries for a finite number of repetitions, contrast to discrimination of a pair of bipartite states and also to asymptotic discrimination of unitaries.

DOI
10.1038/srep18270

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Distinguishability is a fundamental and operational measure generally connected to information applications. In quantum information theory, from the postulates of quantum mechanics it often has an intrinsic limitation, which then dictates and also characterises capabilities of related information tasks. In this work, we consider discrimination between bipartite two-qubit unitary transformations by local operations and classical communication (LOCC) and its relations to entangling capabilities of given unitaries. We show that a pair of entangling unitaries which do not contain local parts, if they are perfectly distinguishable by global operations, can also be perfectly distinguishable by LOCC. There also exist non-entangling unitaries, e.g. local unitaries, that are perfectly discriminated by global operations but not by LOCC. The results show that capabilities of LOCC are strictly restricted than global operations in distinguishing bipartite unitaries for a finite number of repetitions, contrast to discrimination of a pair of bipartite states and also to asymptotic discrimination of unitaries.
The problem studied in this paper is, if the number of queries to unitary operations is fixed, say kkk, then when do local operations and classical communication (LOCC) suffice for optimally distinguishing bipartite unitary operations? We consider the above problem for two-qubit unitary operations in the case of k=1k=1k=1, showing that for two two-qubit entangling unitary operations without local parties, LOCC achieves the same distinguishability as the global operations. Specifically, we obtain the following: (i) if such two unitary operations are perfectly distinguishable by global operations, then they are perfectly distinguishable by LOCC also, and (ii) if they are not perfectly distinguishable by global operations, then LOCC can achieve the same optimal discrimination probability as the global operations.
Recently, the problem of discriminating multipartite unitary operations by local operations and classical communication (LOCC) has attracted significant attention. The latest work in the literature on this problem showed that two multipartite unitary operations can always be perfectly distinguished by LOCC when a finite number of runs are allowable. However, in these schemes, local entanglement (an entangled state held by one party) was required, which seems to imply that local entanglement is necessary for perfect discrimination between unitary operations by LOCC. In this paper, we show that a perfect discrimination between two unitary operations acting on a two-qudit system can always be achieved without exploiting any entanglement. As a result, we conclude that local entanglement is not necessary for perfect discrimination between unitary operations acting on a two-qudit system by LOCC. Our result, in general, is based on the assumption made by X. F. Zhou, Y. S. Zhang, and G. C. Guo [Phys. Rev. Lett. 99, 170401 (2007)] that for any unitary operation UUU, we can obtain its reverse transformation ${U}^{\ifmmode\dagger\else\textdagger\fi{}}$ by exchanging the input and output ports of the whole setup. Thus, we further consider whether we can avoid using this assumption, and we find that for unitary operations acting on two qubits, our result can be obtained without using this assumption. However, in higher dimension how to do that seems to be unclear.
In this paper, we consider the conditions under which a given ensemble of two-qubit states can be optimally distinguished by local operations and classical communication (LOCC). We begin by completing the perfect distinguishability problem of two-qubit ensembles-both for separable operations and LOCC-by providing necessary and sufficient conditions for the perfect discrimination of one pure and one mixed state. Then, for the well-known task of minimum error discrimination, it is shown that almost all two-qubit ensembles consisting of three pure states cannot be optimally discriminated using LOCC. This is surprising considering that any two pure states can be distinguished optimally by LOCC. Special attention is given to ensembles that lack entanglement, and we prove an easy sufficient condition for when a set of three product states cannot be optimally distinguished by LOCC, thus providing new examples of the phenomenon known as non-locality without entanglement. We next consider an example of N parties who each share the same state but who are ignorant of its identity. The state is drawn from the rotationally invariant trine ensemble, and we establish a tight connection between the N-copy ensemble and Shor's lifted single-copy ensemble. For any finite N, we prove that optimal identification of the states cannot be achieved by LOCC; however, as N→∞, LOCC can indeed discriminate the states optimally. This is the first result of its kind. Finally, we turn to the task of unambiguous discrimination and derive new lower bounds on the LOCC inconclusive probability for symmetric states. When applied to the double trine ensemble, this leads to a rather different distinguishability character than when the minimum error probability is considered.
We consider the question of perfect local distinguishability of mutually orthogonal bipartite quantum states, with the property that every state can be specified by a unitary operator acting on the local Hilbert space of Bob. We show that if the states can be exactly discriminated by one-way local operations and classical communication (LOCC) where Alice goes first, then the unitary operators can also be perfectly distinguished by an orthogonal measurement on Bob's Hilbert space. We give examples of sets of N ⩽ d maximally entangled states in d ⊗ d for d = 4,5,6 that are not perfectly distinguishable by one-way LOCC. Interestingly, for d = 5,6, our examples consist of four and five states, respectively. We conjecture that these states cannot be perfectly discriminated by two-way LOCC.
We show that a pair of two-qubit product measurements can be perfectly distinguished when accessed jointly, yet cannot be perfectly distinguished when their local components are distributed between distant parties restricted to local quantum operations and classical communication (LOCC). This establishes a measurement analogue of nonlocality without entanglement that, unlike its state-based counterpart, emerges in a remarkably simple setting. We further uncover a hierarchy of LOCC discrimination strategies: adaptive protocols, in which the probe used at one site may depend on classical information obtained from another, can strictly outperform restricted non-adaptive protocols, as demonstrated by a set of six bipartite qutrit product measurements. We also show that LOCC distinguishability of bipartite measurements can be intrinsically directional, depending on which party initiates the protocol. More generally, we construct pairs of nnn-qubit product measurements that are globally perfectly distinguishable but cannot be perfectly distinguished across any bipartition, even when all parties on either side of the bipartition are allowed arbitrary joint quantum operations. Finally, we show how quantum data hiding based on quantum-process nonlocality without entanglement can be realized using elementary optical components.
We study single-shot distinguishability of locally implementable multipartite unitaries under Local Operations and Classical Communication (LOCC) and global operations. As unitary discrimination depends on both the choice of probing states and the measurements on the evolved states, we classify LOCC and global distinguishability into two categories: adaptive strategies, where probing states are chosen based on measurement outcomes from other subsystems, and restricted strategies, where probing states remain fixed. Our findings uncover three surprising features in the bipartite setting and establish new structural limits for unitary discrimination: (i) Certain pairs of unitaries are globally distinguishable with restricted strategies but indistinguishable under LOCC, even with adaptive strategies. (ii) There exist sets of four unitaries that are distinguishable via LOCC, yet remain globally indistinguishable with restricted strategies. (iii) Some sets of unitaries are globally indistinguishable under adaptive strategies, when probed with separable states, but become distinguishable via LOCC.