Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

arXiv:2210.13494 · npj Quantum Information

Resource-efficient simulation of noisy quantum circuits and application to network-enabled QRAM optimization

Luís Bugalho, Emmanuel Zambrini Cruzeiro, Kevin C. Chen, Wenhan Dai, Dirk Englund, Yasser Omar

Published Oct 20, 2023• 11 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Abstract Giovannetti, Lloyd, and Maccone (2008) proposed a quantum random access memory (QRAM) architecture to retrieve arbitrary superpositions of N (quantum) memory cells via quantum switches and $$O(\log (N))$$ O ( log ( N ) ) address qubits. Toward physical QRAM implementations, Chen et al. (2021) recently showed that QRAM maps natively onto optically connected quantum networks with $$O(\log (N))$$ O ( log ( N ) ) overhead and built-in error detection. However, modeling QRAM on large networks has been stymied by exponentially rising classical compute requirements. Here, we address this bottleneck by: (1) introducing a resource-efficient method for simulating large-scale noisy entanglement, allowing us to evaluate hundreds and even thousands of qubits under various noise channels; and (2) analyzing Chen et al.’s network-based QRAM as an application at the scale of quantum data centers or near-term quantum internet; and (3) introducing a modified network-based QRAM architecture to improve quantum fidelity and access rate. We conclude that network-based QRAM could be built with existing or near-term technologies leveraging photonic integrated circuits and atomic or atom-like quantum memories.

DOI
10.1038/s41534-023-00773-x

Related papers

Resilience of Quantum Random Access Memory to Generic Noise

Connor T. Hann, Gideon Lee, S. M. Girvin +1 more

Quantum random access memory (QRAM)—memory which stores classical data but allows queries to be performed in superposition—is required for the implementation of numerous quantum algorithms. While naive implementations of QRAM are highly susceptible to decoherence and hence not scalable, it has been argued that the bucket-brigade QRAM architecture [Giovannetti et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 160501 (2008)] is highly resilient to noise, with the infidelity of a query scaling only logarithmically with the memory size. In prior analyses, however, this favorable scaling followed directly from the use of contrived noise models, thus leaving open the question of whether experimental implementations would actually enjoy the purported scaling advantage. In this work, we study the effects of decoherence on QRAM in full generality. Our main result is a proof that this favorable infidelity scaling holds for arbitrary error channels (including, e.g., depolarizing noise and coherent errors). Our proof identifies the origin of this noise resilience as the limited entanglement among the memory’s components, and it also reveals that significant architectural simplifications can be made while preserving the noise resilience. We verify these results numerically using a novel classical algorithm for the efficient simulation of noisy QRAM circuits. Our findings indicate that QRAM can be implemented with existing hardware in realistically noisy devices, and that high-fidelity queries are possible without quantum error correction. Furthermore, we also prove that the benefits of the bucket-brigade architecture persist when quantum error correction is used, in which case the scheme offers improved hardware efficiency and resilience to logical errors.

•Apr 29, 2021•56 citations

Resilience of Quantum Random Access Memory to Generic Noise

Connor T. Hann, Gideon Lee, S. M. Girvin +1 more

Quantum random access memory (QRAM)-memory which stores classical data but allows queries to be performed in superposition-is required for the implementation of numerous quantum algorithms.While naive implementations of QRAM are highly susceptible to decoherence and hence not scalable, it has been argued that the bucket-brigade QRAM architecture [Giovannetti et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 160501 (2008)] is highly resilient to noise, with the infidelity of a query scaling only logarithmically with the memory size.In prior analyses, however, this favorable scaling followed directly from the use of contrived noise models, thus leaving open the question of whether experimental implementations would actually enjoy the purported scaling advantage.In this work, we study the effects of decoherence on QRAM in full generality.Our main result is a proof that this favorable infidelity scaling holds for arbitrary error channels (including, e.g., depolarizing noise and coherent errors).Our proof identifies the origin of this noise resilience as the limited entanglement among the memory's components, and it also reveals that significant architectural simplifications can be made while preserving the noise resilience.We verify these results numerically using a novel classical algorithm for the efficient simulation of noisy QRAM circuits.Our findings indicate that QRAM can be implemented with existing hardware in realistically noisy devices, and that high-fidelity queries are possible without quantum error correction.Furthermore, we also prove that the benefits of the bucket-brigade architecture persist when quantum error correction is used, in which case the scheme offers improved hardware efficiency and resilience to logical errors.

arXiv:2012.05340•PRX Quantum•Apr 29, 2021•69 citations

Quantum Random Access Memory

Vittorio Giovannetti, Seth Lloyd, Lorenzo Maccone

A random access memory (RAM) uses n bits to randomly address N=2(n) distinct memory cells. A quantum random access memory (QRAM) uses n qubits to address any quantum superposition of N memory cells. We present an architecture that exponentially reduces the requirements for a memory call: O(logN) switches need be thrown instead of the N used in conventional (classical or quantum) RAM designs. This yields a more robust QRAM algorithm, as it in general requires entanglement among exponentially less gates, and leads to an exponential decrease in the power needed for addressing. A quantum optical implementation is presented.

arXiv:0708.1879•Physical Review Letters•Apr 21, 2008•936 citations

Technical analysis of the Resource-efficient Quantum Walkers Quantum Random Access Memory

Giuseppe De Riso, Giuseppe Catalano, Seth Lloyd +2 more

Quantum Random Access Memory (qRAM) is a critical component for achieving quantum advantage in algorithms ranging from database search to quantum machine learning. In a recently introduced model [arXiv:2508.02855], we proposed a resource-efficient qRAM architecture based on discrete-time quantum walkers. This article serves as a comprehensive technical follow-up, providing the full mathematical derivations, detailed protocol specifications, and in-depth resource analysis. Moreover, we extend the original proposal with novel techniques for the purpose of making the qRAM implementation more realistic. Our model resolves the primary drawbacks of leading qRAM proposals: it avoids the exponential number of active nodes $\mathcal{O}(2^n)$ required by the "Bucket Brigade" architecture by employing a number of quantum walkers that scales linearly with the address and message sizes, $n$ and $m$, respectively. Simultaneously, it overcomes the spatial bottlenecks of previous quantum-walker schemes by eliminating the need for multiple parallel trees. We propose two algorithmic paradigms: the long- and the short-range approaches, which differ by the length of interaction of the main routing gates employed in the qRAM. We formalize the routing, message-copy, and walker retrieval phases for both variants and we show how, while the long-range scheme employs controlled gates having a multitude of target systems, the short-range approach decomposes these interactions into sequences of 2- and 3-body local gates, which improves the architecture's feasibility for near-term experimental implementation. Finally, our comprehensive resource analysis confirms that the short-range approach achieves the optimal $\mathcal{O}(n+m)$ circuit depth. Within these two paradigms, we explore the potential of different types of quantum walkers, namely bosons, dual-rail qubits and four-level qudits.

quant-pharXiv:2609.40020•Oct 1, 2026•0 citations

Quantum Random Access Memory for Dummies

Koustubh Phalak, Avimita Chatterjee, Swaroop Ghosh

Quantum Random Access Memory (QRAM) has the potential to revolutionize the area of quantum computing. QRAM uses quantum computing principles to store and modify quantum or classical data efficiently, greatly accelerating a wide range of computer processes. Despite its importance, there is a lack of comprehensive surveys that cover the entire spectrum of QRAM architectures. We fill this gap by providing a comprehensive review of QRAM, emphasizing its significance and viability in existing noisy quantum computers. By drawing comparisons with conventional RAM for ease of understanding, this survey clarifies the fundamental ideas and actions of QRAM. QRAM provides an exponential time advantage compared to its classical counterpart by reading and writing all data at once, which is achieved owing to storage of data in a superposition of states. Overall, we compare six different QRAM technologies in terms of their structure and workings, circuit width and depth, unique qualities, practical implementation, and drawbacks. In general, with the exception of trainable machine learning-based QRAMs, we observe that QRAM has exponential depth/width requirements in terms of the number of qubits/qudits and that most QRAM implementations are practical for superconducting and trapped-ion qubit systems.

arXiv:2305.01178•Sensors•Aug 28, 2023•43 citations

Error-Mitigated Quantum Random Access Memory

Wenbo Shi, Neel Kanth Kundu, Matthew R. McKay +1 more

As an alternative to quantum error correction, quantum error mitigation methods, including Zero-Noise Extrapolation (ZNE), have been proposed to alleviate run-time errors in current noisy quantum devices. In this work, we propose a modified version of ZNE that provides for a significant performance enhancement on current noisy devices. Our modified ZNE method extrapolates to zero-noise data by evaluating groups of noisy data obtained from noise-scaled circuits and selecting extrapolation functions for each group with the assistance of estimated noisy simulation results. To quantify enhancement in a real-world quantum application, we embed our modified ZNE in Quantum Random Access Memory (QRAM) - a memory system important for future quantum networks and computers. Our new ZNE-enhanced QRAM designs are experimentally implemented on a 27-qubit noisy superconducting quantum device, the results of which demonstrate QRAM fidelity can be improved significantly relative to traditional ZNE usage. Our results demonstrate the critical role the extrapolation function plays in ZNE - judicious choice of that function on a per-measurement basis can make the difference between a quantum application being functional or non-functional.

arXiv:2403.06340•International Conference on Quantum Communications, Networking, and Computing (QCNC)•Mar 31, 2025•0 citations
Abstract Giovannetti, Lloyd, and Maccone (2008) proposed a quantum random access memory (QRAM) architecture to retrieve arbitrary superpositions of N (quantum) memory cells via quantum switches and O(log⁡(N))O(\log (N))O(log(N)) O ( log ( N ) ) address qubits. Toward physical QRAM implementations, Chen et al. (2021) recently showed that QRAM maps natively onto optically connected quantum networks with O(log⁡(N))O(\log (N))O(log(N)) O ( log ( N ) ) overhead and built-in error detection. However, modeling QRAM on large networks has been stymied by exponentially rising classical compute requirements. Here, we address this bottleneck by: (1) introducing a resource-efficient method for simulating large-scale noisy entanglement, allowing us to evaluate hundreds and even thousands of qubits under various noise channels; and (2) analyzing Chen et al.’s network-based QRAM as an application at the scale of quantum data centers or near-term quantum internet; and (3) introducing a modified network-based QRAM architecture to improve quantum fidelity and access rate. We conclude that network-based QRAM could be built with existing or near-term technologies leveraging photonic integrated circuits and atomic or atom-like quantum memories.
Quantum random access memory (QRAM)—memory which stores classical data but allows queries to be performed in superposition—is required for the implementation of numerous quantum algorithms. While naive implementations of QRAM are highly susceptible to decoherence and hence not scalable, it has been argued that the bucket-brigade QRAM architecture [Giovannetti et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 160501 (2008)] is highly resilient to noise, with the infidelity of a query scaling only logarithmically with the memory size. In prior analyses, however, this favorable scaling followed directly from the use of contrived noise models, thus leaving open the question of whether experimental implementations would actually enjoy the purported scaling advantage. In this work, we study the effects of decoherence on QRAM in full generality. Our main result is a proof that this favorable infidelity scaling holds for arbitrary error channels (including, e.g., depolarizing noise and coherent errors). Our proof identifies the origin of this noise resilience as the limited entanglement among the memory’s components, and it also reveals that significant architectural simplifications can be made while preserving the noise resilience. We verify these results numerically using a novel classical algorithm for the efficient simulation of noisy QRAM circuits. Our findings indicate that QRAM can be implemented with existing hardware in realistically noisy devices, and that high-fidelity queries are possible without quantum error correction. Furthermore, we also prove that the benefits of the bucket-brigade architecture persist when quantum error correction is used, in which case the scheme offers improved hardware efficiency and resilience to logical errors.
Quantum random access memory (QRAM)-memory which stores classical data but allows queries to be performed in superposition-is required for the implementation of numerous quantum algorithms.While naive implementations of QRAM are highly susceptible to decoherence and hence not scalable, it has been argued that the bucket-brigade QRAM architecture [Giovannetti et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 160501 (2008)] is highly resilient to noise, with the infidelity of a query scaling only logarithmically with the memory size.In prior analyses, however, this favorable scaling followed directly from the use of contrived noise models, thus leaving open the question of whether experimental implementations would actually enjoy the purported scaling advantage.In this work, we study the effects of decoherence on QRAM in full generality.Our main result is a proof that this favorable infidelity scaling holds for arbitrary error channels (including, e.g., depolarizing noise and coherent errors).Our proof identifies the origin of this noise resilience as the limited entanglement among the memory's components, and it also reveals that significant architectural simplifications can be made while preserving the noise resilience.We verify these results numerically using a novel classical algorithm for the efficient simulation of noisy QRAM circuits.Our findings indicate that QRAM can be implemented with existing hardware in realistically noisy devices, and that high-fidelity queries are possible without quantum error correction.Furthermore, we also prove that the benefits of the bucket-brigade architecture persist when quantum error correction is used, in which case the scheme offers improved hardware efficiency and resilience to logical errors.
A random access memory (RAM) uses n bits to randomly address N=2(n) distinct memory cells. A quantum random access memory (QRAM) uses n qubits to address any quantum superposition of N memory cells. We present an architecture that exponentially reduces the requirements for a memory call: O(logN) switches need be thrown instead of the N used in conventional (classical or quantum) RAM designs. This yields a more robust QRAM algorithm, as it in general requires entanglement among exponentially less gates, and leads to an exponential decrease in the power needed for addressing. A quantum optical implementation is presented.
Quantum Random Access Memory (qRAM) is a critical component for achieving quantum advantage in algorithms ranging from database search to quantum machine learning. In a recently introduced model [arXiv:2508.02855], we proposed a resource-efficient qRAM architecture based on discrete-time quantum walkers. This article serves as a comprehensive technical follow-up, providing the full mathematical derivations, detailed protocol specifications, and in-depth resource analysis. Moreover, we extend the original proposal with novel techniques for the purpose of making the qRAM implementation more realistic. Our model resolves the primary drawbacks of leading qRAM proposals: it avoids the exponential number of active nodes O(2n)\mathcal{O}(2^n)O(2n) required by the "Bucket Brigade" architecture by employing a number of quantum walkers that scales linearly with the address and message sizes, nnn and mmm, respectively. Simultaneously, it overcomes the spatial bottlenecks of previous quantum-walker schemes by eliminating the need for multiple parallel trees. We propose two algorithmic paradigms: the long- and the short-range approaches, which differ by the length of interaction of the main routing gates employed in the qRAM. We formalize the routing, message-copy, and walker retrieval phases for both variants and we show how, while the long-range scheme employs controlled gates having a multitude of target systems, the short-range approach decomposes these interactions into sequences of 2- and 3-body local gates, which improves the architecture's feasibility for near-term experimental implementation. Finally, our comprehensive resource analysis confirms that the short-range approach achieves the optimal O(n+m)\mathcal{O}(n+m)O(n+m) circuit depth. Within these two paradigms, we explore the potential of different types of quantum walkers, namely bosons, dual-rail qubits and four-level qudits.
Quantum Random Access Memory (QRAM) has the potential to revolutionize the area of quantum computing. QRAM uses quantum computing principles to store and modify quantum or classical data efficiently, greatly accelerating a wide range of computer processes. Despite its importance, there is a lack of comprehensive surveys that cover the entire spectrum of QRAM architectures. We fill this gap by providing a comprehensive review of QRAM, emphasizing its significance and viability in existing noisy quantum computers. By drawing comparisons with conventional RAM for ease of understanding, this survey clarifies the fundamental ideas and actions of QRAM. QRAM provides an exponential time advantage compared to its classical counterpart by reading and writing all data at once, which is achieved owing to storage of data in a superposition of states. Overall, we compare six different QRAM technologies in terms of their structure and workings, circuit width and depth, unique qualities, practical implementation, and drawbacks. In general, with the exception of trainable machine learning-based QRAMs, we observe that QRAM has exponential depth/width requirements in terms of the number of qubits/qudits and that most QRAM implementations are practical for superconducting and trapped-ion qubit systems.
As an alternative to quantum error correction, quantum error mitigation methods, including Zero-Noise Extrapolation (ZNE), have been proposed to alleviate run-time errors in current noisy quantum devices. In this work, we propose a modified version of ZNE that provides for a significant performance enhancement on current noisy devices. Our modified ZNE method extrapolates to zero-noise data by evaluating groups of noisy data obtained from noise-scaled circuits and selecting extrapolation functions for each group with the assistance of estimated noisy simulation results. To quantify enhancement in a real-world quantum application, we embed our modified ZNE in Quantum Random Access Memory (QRAM) - a memory system important for future quantum networks and computers. Our new ZNE-enhanced QRAM designs are experimentally implemented on a 27-qubit noisy superconducting quantum device, the results of which demonstrate QRAM fidelity can be improved significantly relative to traditional ZNE usage. Our results demonstrate the critical role the extrapolation function plays in ZNE - judicious choice of that function on a per-measurement basis can make the difference between a quantum application being functional or non-functional.