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arXiv:2107.09968

Experimental multi-state quantum discrimination through a Quantum network

Alessandro Laneve, Andrea Geraldi, Frenkli Hamiti, Paolo Mataloni, Filippo Caruso

Published Jul 21, 2021• 1 citation
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Abstract

The need of discriminating between different quantum states is a fundamental issue in Quantum Information and Communication. The actual realization of generally optimal strategies in this task is often limited by the need of supplemental resources and very complex receivers. We have experimentally implemented two discrimination schemes in a minimum-error scenario based on a receiver featured by a network structure and a dynamical processing of information. The first protocol implemented in our experiment, directly inspired to a recent theoretical proposal, achieves binary optimal discrimination, while the second one provides a novel approach to multi-state quantum discrimination, relying on the dynamical features of the network-like receiver. This strategy exploits the arrival time degree of freedom as an encoding variable, achieving optimal results, without the need for supplemental systems or devices. Our results further reveal the potential of dynamical approaches to Quantum State Discrimination tasks, providing a possible starting point for efficient alternatives to current experimental strategies.

DOI
10.48550/arxiv.2107.09968

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The need of discriminating between different quantum states is a fundamental issue in Quantum Information and Communication. The actual realization of generally optimal strategies in this task is often limited by the need of supplemental resources and very complex receivers. We have experimentally implemented two discrimination schemes in a minimum-error scenario based on a receiver featured by a network structure and a dynamical processing of information. The first protocol implemented in our experiment, directly inspired to a recent theoretical proposal, achieves binary optimal discrimination, while the second one provides a novel approach to multi-state quantum discrimination, relying on the dynamical features of the network-like receiver. This strategy exploits the arrival time degree of freedom as an encoding variable, achieving optimal results, without the need for supplemental systems or devices. Our results further reveal the potential of dynamical approaches to Quantum State Discrimination tasks, providing a possible starting point for efficient alternatives to current experimental strategies.
Abstract Developing strategies to effectively discriminate between different quantum states is a fundamental issue in quantum information and communication. The actual realization of generally optimal protocols in this task is often limited by the need of supplemental resources and very complex receivers. We have experimentally implemented two discrimination schemes in a minimum-error scenario based on a receiver featured by a network structure and a dynamical processing of information. The first protocol implemented in our experiment, directly inspired to a recent theoretical proposal, achieves binary optimal discrimination, while the second one provides a novel approach to multi-state quantum discrimination, relying on the dynamical features of the network-like receiver. This strategy exploits the arrival time degree of freedom as an encoding variable, achieving optimal results, without the need for supplemental systems or devices. Our results further reveal the potential of dynamical approaches to quantum state discrimination tasks, providing a possible starting point for efficient alternatives to current experimental strategies.
Discrimination between objects, in particular quantum states, is one of the most fundamental tasks in (quantum) information theory. Recent years have seen significant progress towards extending the framework to point-to-point quantum channels. However, with technological progress the focus of the field is shifting to more complex structures: Quantum networks. In contrast to channels, networks allow for intermediate access points where information can be received, processed and reintroduced into the network. In this work we study the discrimination of quantum networks and its fundamental limitations. In particular when multiple uses of the network are at hand, the rooster of available strategies becomes increasingly complex. The simplest quantum network that capturers the structure of the problem is given by a quantum superchannel. We discuss the available classes of strategies when considering n copies of a superchannel and give fundamental bounds on the asymptotically achievable rates in an asymmetric discrimination setting. Furthermore, we discuss achievability, symmetric network discrimination, the strong converse exponent, generalization to arbitrary quantum networks and finally an application to an active version of the quantum illumination problem.
In quantum information and quantum computing, the carrier of information is some quantum system and information is encoded in its state. After processing the state in the quantum processor, the information has to be read out. Clearly, this task is equivalent to determining the final state of the system. We begin by briefly reviewing various possible state discrimination strategies that are optimal with respect to some reasonable criteria and report on recent advances in the unambiguous discrimination of mixed quantum states. This strategy has been successfully applied to devise a class of novel probabilistic quantum algorithms and has been demonstrated experimentally, using a linear optical implementation via generalized interferometers. In the second part we present a scheme for communication via completely unknown quantum states. In this context we discuss programmable quantum state discriminators that are universal, i.e. perform optimally on average, independently of the actual states used for the communication scheme. We conclude with a discussion of possible experimental implementations of the proposed device.
Quantum state discrimination underlies various applications in quantum information processing tasks. It essentially describes the distinguishability of quantum systems in different states, and the general process of extracting classical information from quantum systems. It is also useful in quantum information applications, such as the characterization of mutual information in cryptographic protocols, or as a technique for deriving fundamental theorems on quantum foundations. It has deep connections to physical principles such as relativistic causality. Quantum state discrimination traces a long history of several decades, starting with the early attempts to formalize information processing of physical systems such as optical communication with photons. Nevertheless, in most cases, the problems of finding optimal strategies of quantum state discrimination remain unsolved, and related applications are valid in some limited cases only. The present review aims to provide an overview on quantum state discrimination, covering some recent progress, and addressing applications in some selected areas. This review serves to strengthen the link between results in quantum state discrimination and quantum information applications, by showing the ways in which the fundamental results are exploited in applications and vice versa.
The quest for the realization of effective quantum state discrimination strategies is of great interest for quantum information technology, as well as for fundamental studies. Therefore, it is crucial to develop new and more efficient methods to implement discrimination protocols for quantum states. Among the others, single photon implementations are more advisable, because of their inherent security advantage in quantum communication scenarios. In this work, we present the experimental realization of a protocol employing a time-multiplexing strategy to optimally discriminate among eight non-orthogonal states, encoded in the four-dimensional Hilbert space spanning both the polarization degree of freedom and photon energy. The experiment, built on a custom-designed bulk optics analyser setup and single photons generated by a nearly deterministic solid-state source, represents a benchmarking example of minimum error discrimination with actual quantum states, requiring only linear optics and two photodetectors to be realized. Our work paves the way for more complex applications and delivers a novel approach towards high-dimensional quantum encoding and decoding operations.
The problem of non-orthogonal state discrimination underlies crucial quantum information tasks, such as cryptography and computing protocols. Therefore, it is decisive to find optimal scenarios for discrimination among quantum states. We experimentally investigate the strategy for the optimal discrimination of two non-orthogonal states considering a fixed rate of inconclusive outcomes (FRIO). The main advantage of the FRIO strategy is to interpolate between unambiguous and minimum error discrimination by solely adjusting the rate of inconclusive outcomes. We present a versatile experimental scheme that performs the optimal FRIO measurement for any pair of generated non-orthogonal states with arbitrary a priori probabilities and any fixed rate of inconclusive outcomes. Considering different values of the free parameters in the FRIO protocol, we implement it upon qubit states encoded in the polarization mode of single photons generated in the spontaneous parametric down-conversion process. Moreover, we resort to a newfangled double-path Sagnac interferometer to perform a three-outcome non-projective measurement required for the discrimination task, showing excellent agreement with the theoretical prediction. This experiment provides a practical toolbox for a wide range of quantum state discrimination strategies using the FRIO scheme, which can significantly benefit quantum information applications and fundamental studies in quantum theory.