The recent progress of the Majorana experiments paves a way for the future tests of non-Abelian braiding statistics and topologically protected quantum information processing. However, a deficient design in those tests could be very dangerous and reach false-positive conclusions. A careful theoretical analysis is necessary so as to develop loophole-free tests. We introduce a series of classical hidden variable models to capture certain key properties of Majorana system: non-locality, topologically non-triviality, and quantum interference. Those models could help us to classify the Majorana properties and to set up the boundaries and limitations of Majorana non-Abelian tests: fusion tests, braiding tests and test set with joint measurements. We find a hierarchy among those Majorana tests with increasing experimental complexity.
The recent progress of the Majorana experiments paves a way for the future tests of non-Abelian braiding statistics and topologically protected quantum information processing. However, a deficient design in those tests could be very dangerous and reach false-positive conclusions. A careful theoretical analysis is necessary so as to develop loophole-free tests. We introduce a series of classical hidden variable models to capture certain key properties of Majorana system: non-locality, topologically non-triviality, and quantum interference. Those models could help us to classify the Majorana properties and to set up the boundaries and limitations of Majorana non-Abelian tests: fusion tests, braiding tests and test set with joint measurements. We find a hierarchy among those Majorana tests with increasing experimental complexity.
Localized Majorana fermions emerge in many topologically ordered systems and exhibit exchange statistics of Ising anyons. This enables noise-resistant implementation of a limited set of operations by braiding and fusing Majorana fermions. Unfortunately, these operations are incapable of implementing universal quantum computation. We show that, regardless of these limitations, Majorana fermions could be used to demonstrate non-locality (correlations incompatible with a local hidden variable theory) in experiments using only topologically protected operations. We also demonstrate that our proposal is optimal in terms of resources, with 10 Majorana fermions shown to be both necessary and sufficient for demonstrating bipartite non-locality. Furthermore, we identify severe restrictions on the possibility of tripartite non-locality. We comment on the potential of such entangled systems to be used in quantum information protocols.
Localized Majorana fermions emerge in many topologically ordered systems and exhibit exchange statistics of Ising anyons. This enables noise-resistant implementation of a limited set of operations by braiding and fusing Majorana fermions. Unfortunately, these operations are incapable of implementing universal quantum computation. We show that, regardless of these limitations, Majorana fermions could be used to demonstrate non-locality (correlations incompatible with a local hidden variable theory) in experiments using only topologically protected operations. We also demonstrate that our proposal is optimal in terms of resources, with 10 Majorana fermions shown to be both necessary and sufficient for demonstrating bipartite non-locality. Furthermore, we identify severe restrictions on the possibility of tripartite non-locality. We comment on the potential of such entangled systems to be used in quantum information protocols.
Majorana zero modes, characterized by non-Abelian exchange statistics, have been widely viewed as prime candidates for implementing topological quantum computing. The associated braiding and fusion operations realize topologically protected quantum gates and qubit measurements, thus providing a feasible pathway toward intrinsically fault-tolerant quantum computation. However, the experimental realization of controllable braiding and fusion of Majorana zero modes remains one of the most formidable challenges in the field.In this paper, building upon recent theoretical advances in quantum-dot-assisted schemes for realizing the braiding and fusion of Majorana zero modes, we provide a systematic introduction to the underlying theoretical foundations and detailed operational procedures, and further elucidate the experimental feasibility of the approach.Furthermore, this paper presents two lines of investigation developed within the proposed framework. Firstly, based on the quantum-dot-assisted braiding scheme, the dynamical evolution of Andreev bound states in Majorana nanowires is revealed. Secondly, employing the quantum-dot-assisted fusion scheme, numerical simulations of charge transfer along different fusion paths clarify the nontrivial fusion rules of Majorana zero modes and the corresponding operational procedures.
Majorana zero modes (MZMs) exhibit a fundamental property of non-Abelian statistics, which makes them potentially useful as ideal quantum bits to manipulate certain topological quantum tasks. Rapid theoretical developments have greatly reduced the technological requirements and made it possible to experimentally observe MZMs. However, until now, only a few positive signatures of the formation of MZMs have been reported in solid-state systems, and there has been no investigation of their crucial non-Abelian aspects. Here, we experimentally investigate the non-Abelian character of MZMs in the Kitaev chain model using a photonic quantum simulator. Through the Jordan-Wigner transformation, the geometry phases of the braiding of two MZMs can be directly obtained in an optical system. The local phase-error immunity of MZMs is further studied. This work will be useful for the study of quantum non-Abelian statistics and may provide a novel way to investigate topological quantities of quantum systems.
I will discuss the revolutionary new concept of topological quantum computation, which is fault-tolerant at the hardware level with no need, in principle, of any quantum error correction protocols. Errors simply do not occur since the physical qubits and the computation steps are protected against decoherence by non-local topological correlations in the underlying physical system. The key idea is non-Abelian statistics of the quasiparticles (called 'anyons' as opposed to fermions or bosons), where the space-time braiding of the anyons around each other, i.e. quantum 'knots', form topologically protected quantum gate operations. I will describe in detail the theoretical principles guiding the experimental search for the appropriate topological phases of matter where such non-Abelian anyons, which are low-dimensional solid state versions of the elusive and exotic Majorana fermions hypothesized seventy-five years ago, may exist. I will critically discuss the recent experimental claims of observing the Majorana modes in semiconductor nanowire structures following earlier theoretical proposals, outlining the future developments which would be necessary to eventually build a topological quantum computer.
Majorana zero modes are emergent zero-energy quasiparticle excitations in certain superconducting systems that can be viewed as fractionalized or “half” electrons. These quasiparticles obey non-Abelian braiding statistics which is one manifestation of such half-electron character. Due to such non-Abelian braiding property, Majorana zero mode pairs hold promise as potential qubits for topological quantum computation. It is somewhat surprising that, at least theoretically, ordinary one-dimensional semiconductor systems can be induced to host such esoteric Majorana modes as edge states if some precise experimental conditions are satisfied. Because of the relative simplicity of material and experimental requirements to host Majorana modes, there has been a flurry of experimental effort to realize them in semiconductor nanowire systems. While experimental efforts have produced preliminary evidence for the presence of Majorana zero modes in these systems, a thorough confirmation is lacking. The experimental signature in question is the presence of a zero-bias conductance-peak that, while necessary, is not a sufficient criterion to establish the presence of underlying Majorana modes. Given the importance of Majorana braiding for topological quantum computation and skepticism over the presence of Majorana modes in these experimental systems, it would seem natural to attempt braiding these putative Majorana modes in the near future. In that case, an observation of non-Abelian statistics would provide the necessary and sufficient condition in favor of Majorana presence in the studied experimental systems. This thesis has three distinct parts. First, we assume perfect Majorana modes as given that can be successfully braided. In this case, we calculate the diabatic error due to the finite speed of braiding when the system is coupled to a Bosonic bath. Next, we grant that the mechanism for zero-bias conductance-peak is indeed topological, albeit the underlying Majorana modes may be imperfect (the modes are not precisely at zero energy). We study the interplay of dissipation and finite energy splitting of the Majorana modes and study its consequence regarding the probability of successful braiding. Lastly, we propose studying the correlation between independent left and right conductance measurements as a means to distinguish between a topological versus a non-topological the mechanism underlying the observed zero-bias conductance-peak.