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arXiv:2303.04261 · Physical Review Applied

Direct pulse-level compilation of arbitrary quantum logic gates on superconducting qutrits

Yujin Cho, Kristin M. Beck, Alessandro R. Castelli, Kyle Wendt, Bram Evert, Matthew J. Reagor, Jonathan L. DuBois

Published Sep 27, 2024• 7 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Advanced simulations and calculations on quantum computers require high-fidelity implementations of quantum operations. The universal gateset approach builds complex unitaries from a small set of primitive gates, often resulting in a long gate sequence, which is typically a leading factor in the total accumulated error. Compiling a complex unitary for processors with higher-dimensional logical elements, such as qutrits, exacerbates the accumulated error per unitary, since an even longer gate sequence is required. Optimal control methods promise time- and resource-efficient compact gate sequences and, therefore, higher fidelity. These methods generate pulses that can directly implement any complex unitary on a quantum device. In this work, we demonstrate that any arbitrary qubit and qutrit gate can be realized with high fidelity, which can significantly reduce the length of a gate sequence. We generate and test pulses for a large set of randomly selected arbitrary unitaries on several quantum processing units (QPUs): the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Quantum Device and Integration Testbed's (QuDIT's) standard QPU and three of Rigetti's QPUs: Ankaa-2, Ankaa-9Q-1, and Aspen-M-3. On the QuDIT platform's standard QPU, the average fidelity of random qutrit gates is $97.9\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.5\mathrm{%}$ measured with conventional QPT and $98.8\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.6\mathrm{%}$ from QPT with gate folding. Rigetti's Ankaa-2 achieves random qubit gates with an average fidelity of $98.4\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.5\mathrm{%}$ (conventional QPT) and $99.7\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.1\mathrm{%}$ (QPT with gate folding). On Ankaa-9Q-1 and Aspen-M-3, the average fidelities with conventional qubit QPT measurements were higher than 99% (see Appendix). We show that optimal control gates are robust to drift for at least 3 h and that the same calibration parameters can be used for all implemented gates. Our work promises that the calibration overheads for optimal control gates can be made small enough to enable efficient quantum circuits based on this technique.

DOI
10.1103/physrevapplied.22.034066

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Advanced simulations and calculations on quantum computers require high-fidelity implementations of quantum operations. The universal gateset approach builds complex unitaries from a small set of primitive gates, often resulting in a long gate sequence, which is typically a leading factor in the total accumulated error. Compiling a complex unitary for processors with higher-dimensional logical elements, such as qutrits, exacerbates the accumulated error per unitary, since an even longer gate sequence is required. Optimal control methods promise time- and resource-efficient compact gate sequences and, therefore, higher fidelity. These methods generate pulses that can directly implement any complex unitary on a quantum device. In this work, we demonstrate that any arbitrary qubit and qutrit gate can be realized with high fidelity, which can significantly reduce the length of a gate sequence. We generate and test pulses for a large set of randomly selected arbitrary unitaries on several quantum processing units (QPUs): the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Quantum Device and Integration Testbed's (QuDIT's) standard QPU and three of Rigetti's QPUs: Ankaa-2, Ankaa-9Q-1, and Aspen-M-3. On the QuDIT platform's standard QPU, the average fidelity of random qutrit gates is 97.9\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.5\mathrm{%} measured with conventional QPT and 98.8\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.6\mathrm{%} from QPT with gate folding. Rigetti's Ankaa-2 achieves random qubit gates with an average fidelity of 98.4\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.5\mathrm{%} (conventional QPT) and 99.7\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.1\mathrm{%} (QPT with gate folding). On Ankaa-9Q-1 and Aspen-M-3, the average fidelities with conventional qubit QPT measurements were higher than 99% (see Appendix). We show that optimal control gates are robust to drift for at least 3 h and that the same calibration parameters can be used for all implemented gates. Our work promises that the calibration overheads for optimal control gates can be made small enough to enable efficient quantum circuits based on this technique.
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Gate-based quantum computers typically encode and process information in two-dimensional units called qubits.Using d-dimensional qudits instead may offer intrinsic advantages, including more efficient circuit synthesis, problem-tailored encodings and embedded error correction.In this work, we design a superconducting qudit-based quantum processor wherein the logical space of transmon qubits is extended to higher-excited levels.We propose a universal gate set featuring a two-qudit cross-resonance entangling gate, for which we predict fidelities beyond 99% in the d = 4 case of ququarts with realistic experimental parameters.Furthermore, we present a decomposition routine that compiles general qudit unitaries into these elementary gates, requiring fewer entangling gates than qubit alternatives.As proof-of-concept applications, we numerically demonstrate the synthesis of SU(16) gates for noisy quantum hardware and an embedded error-correction sequence that encodes a qubit memory in a transmon ququart to protect against pure dephasing noise.We conclude that universal qudit control-a valuable extension to the operational toolbox of superconducting quantum information processing-is within reach of current transmon-based architectures and has applications to near-term and long-term hardware.
The set of quantum logic gates that can be easily implemented is fundamental to the performance of quantum computers, as it governs the accuracy of basic quantum operations and dictates the complexity of implementing quantum algorithms. Traditional approaches to extending gate sets often require operating devices outside the ideal parameter regimes used to realize qubits, leading to increased control complexity while offering only a limited set of gates. Here we experimentally demonstrate a unified and versatile gate scheme capable of generating arbitrary two-qubit gates using only an exchange interaction and qubit driving on a superconducting quantum processor. We achieve high fidelities averaging 99.38% across a wide range of commonly used two-qubit unitaries, enabling precise multipartite entangled state preparation. Furthermore, we successfully produce a B gate, which efficiently synthesizes the entire family of two-qubit gates. Our results establish that fully exploiting the capabilities of the exchange interaction can yield a comprehensive and highly accurate gate set. With maximum expressivity, optimal gate time, demonstrated high fidelity and easy adaption to other quantum platforms, our unified control scheme offers the prospect of improved performance in quantum hardware and algorithm development. The efficiency of a quantum computer depends on which basic operations it can implement. Now a scheme that can implement any two-qubit logic gate has been demonstrated on a superconducting architecture.
Qutrits offer the potential for enhanced quantum computation by exploiting an enlarged Hilbert space. However, the synthesis of high-fidelity and fast qutrit gates, particularly for single qutrits, remains an ongoing challenge, as it involves overcoming intrinsic constraints in quantum platforms. Here, we develop a novel framework for the efficient implementation of a single-qutrit gate set via coherent control, leveraging SU(3) dynamics while obviating platform-specific constraints such as those arising from the selection rule. As a proof-of-principle demonstration, we realize 35-ns qutrit hadamard and x gates using a superconducting transmon, achieving an average fidelity of 99.5%, as verified by randomized benchmarking. We further demonstrate two paradigmatic quantum circuits, which can be naturally extended to scalable qudit algorithms for phase estimation and parity check. In addition, we propose an SU(3)-based decomposition strategy for an arbitrary single-qutrit gate and numerically demonstrate its substantial efficiency improvement over conventional SU(2)-based protocols. By addressing the challenge of efficiently implementing single-qutrit gates, our protocol paves the way for realizing high-performance qutrit processors in diverse quantum platforms.
We present a function which connects the parameter of a previously published short sequence of selective number-dependent arbitrary phase (SNAP) and displacement gates acting on a qudit encoded into the Fock states of a superconducting cavity, Vk(α)=D(α)Rπ(k)D(−2α)Rπ(k)D(α)V_k(α)=D(α)R_π(k)D(-2α)R_π(k)D(α)Vk​(α)=D(α)Rπ​(k)D(−2α)Rπ​(k)D(α) to the angle of the Givens rotation G(θ)G(θ)G(θ) on levels ∣k⟩,∣k+1⟩|k\rangle,|k+1\rangle∣k⟩,∣k+1⟩ that sequence approximates, namely α=Φ(θ)=θ4k+1α=Φ(θ) = \fracθ{4\sqrt{k+1}}α=Φ(θ)=4k+1​θ​. Previous publications left the determination of an appropriate ααα to numerical optimization at compile time. The map ΦΦΦ gives us the ability to compile directly any ddd-dimensional unitary into a sequence of SNAP and displacement gates in O(d3)O(d^3)O(d3) complex floating point operations with low constant prefactor, avoiding the need for numerical optimization. Numerical studies demonstrate that the infidelity of the generated gate sequence VkV_kVk​ per Givens rotation GGG scales as approximately O(θ6)O(θ^6)O(θ6). We find numerically that the error on compiled circuits can be made arbitrarily small by breaking each rotation into mmm θ/mθ/mθ/m rotations, with the full d×dd\times dd×d unitary infidelity scaling as approximately O(m−4)O(m^{-4})O(m−4). This represents a significant reduction in the computational effort to compile qudit unitaries either to SNAP and displacement gates or to generate them via direct low-level pulse optimization via optimal control.
There is a recent surge of interest and insights regarding the interplay of quantum optimal control and variational quantum algorithms. We study the framework in the context of qudits which are, for instance, definable as controllable electromagnetic modes of a superconducting cavity system coupled to a transmon. By employing recent quantum optimal control approaches described in (Peterson and Garcia, 2021), we showcase universal control of single-qudit operations up to 8 states, and two-qutrit operations, mapped respectively on a single mode and two modes of the resonator. We discuss the results of numerical pulse engineering on the closed system for parametrized gates useful to implement quantum approximate optimization (QAOA) qudits algorithms. The results show that high fidelity (> 0.99) is achievable with sufficient computational effort on HPC for most cases under study, and extension to multiple modes and open, noisy systems are possible. The tailored pulses can be stored and used as calibrated primitives for a future compiler in cQED systems.