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arXiv:2005.04231 · Modern Physics Letters A

Clifford algebras, algebraic spinors, quantum information and applications

Marco A. S. Trindade, Sérgio Floquet, J. David M. Vianna

Published Jul 30, 2020• 2 citations
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Abstract

We give an algebraic formulation based on Clifford algebras and algebraic spinors for quantum information. In this context, logic gates and concepts such as chirality, charge conjugation, parity and time reversal are introduced and explored in connection with states of qubits. Supersymmetry and M-superalgebra are also analyzed with our formalism. Specifically we use extensively the algebras [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] as well as tensor products of Clifford algebras.

DOI
10.1142/s0217732320502399

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We give an algebraic formulation based on Clifford algebras and algebraic spinors for quantum information. In this context, logic gates and concepts such as chirality, charge conjugation, parity and time reversal are introduced and explored in connection with states of qubits. Supersymmetry and M-superalgebra are also analyzed with our formalism. Specifically we use extensively the algebras [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] as well as tensor products of Clifford algebras.
In this work, we explore the structure of Clifford algebras and the representations of the algebraic spinors in quantum information theory. Initially, we present a general formulation through elements of minimal left ideals in tensor products of Clifford algebras. Posteriorly, we perform some applications in quantum computation: qubits, entangled states, quantum gates, representations of the braid group, quantum teleportation, Majorana operators and supersymmetry. Finally, we discuss advantages compared to standard Hilbert space formulation.
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We revisit the Pauli-Clifford connection to introduce a real, grade-preserving algebraic framework for nnn-qubit quantum computation based on the tensor product Cℓ2,0(R)⊗nC\ell_{2,0}(\mathbb{R})^{\otimes n}Cℓ2,0​(R)⊗n. In this setting, the bivector J=e12J = e_{12}J=e12​ satisfies J2=−1J^{2} = -1J2=−1 and supplies the complex structure on the JJJ-closure of a minimal left ideal via right multiplication, while Pauli operations arise as left actions of Clifford elements. The Peirce decomposition organizes the algebra into sector blocks determined by primitive idempotents, with nilpotent elements generating transitions between sectors. Quantum states are represented as equivalence classes modulo the left annihilator, exhibiting the quotient description underlying the minimal left ideal. Adopting a canonical stabilizer mapping, the nnn-qubit computational basis state ∣0⋯0⟩|0\cdots 0\rangle∣0⋯0⟩ is given natively by a tensor product of these idempotents. This structural choice leads to a compatibility law that is stable under the geometric product for nnn qubits and aligns symbolic Clifford multiplication with unitary evolution on the Hilbert space.
Standard quantum information is formulated over complex Hilbert spaces, where the pure state space of a single qubit is geometrically encoded by the first Hopf fibration S3→S2. Beyond this familiar setting, the normed division algebras C, H and O provide a hierarchy of increasingly rich algebraic and topological structures that has motivated several extensions of quantum theory and quantum computation. This review synthesizes the literature connecting quaternionic and octonionic frameworks, Clifford algebras, spinors, projective spaces and Hopf fibrations. We emphasize a central conceptual point that is often blurred in the literature: the second and third Hopf fibrations play two distinct roles, namely, (i) as kinematical descriptions of hypercomplex single-particle state spaces such as the quaternionic projective line HP1≃S4, and (ii) as entanglement-sensitive descriptions of multi-qubit complex systems, especially two- and three-qubit Hilbert spaces. On the algebraic side, Clifford and geometric algebras provide a natural language for rotations, spinors, and gate synthesis, while quaternionic Hilbert modules furnish a mathematically consistent extension of standard qubit kinematics and dynamics. By contrast, octonionic models face major obstructions due to non-associativity, which affects inner products, tensor products, spectral theory and circuit composition. We therefore distinguish carefully between robust results, partial constructions and speculative directions. The outcome is a unified geometric review of hypercomplex quantum information, together with a map of open problems at the interface of topology, noncommutative algebra, and quantum computation.
The link between a quantum spin 1/2 and its associated su(2) algebra of Pauli spin matrices with Clifford algebra and quaternions is well known. A pair of spins or qubits, which are important throughout the field of quantum information for describing logic gates and entangled states, has similarly an su(4) algebra. We develop connections between this algebra and its subalgebras with the projective plane of seven elements (also related to octonions) and other entities in projective geometry and design theory.
Quantum gates are usually described through matrix and tensor-product formalisms that often obscure their geometric structure. In this work, we formulate the Pauli and Clifford groups within the complex Geometric Algebra (GA) framework. We show that the Pauli group is naturally identified with the group of blades up to a global phase, thereby providing a geometric interpretation of Pauli operators and their commutation relations in terms of oriented subspaces. We further prove that Clifford operators are generated by products of π/4-Pauli rotors and introduce a greedy Pauli rotor decomposition algorithm whose empirical behavior suggests unexpectedly compact decompositions for Clifford operators. Finally, we show that Clifford+T universality admits a natural geometric interpretation through π/8-rotors within this framework.