Quantum singular value transformation (QSVT) enables the application of polynomial functions to the singular values of near arbitrary linear operators embedded in unitary transforms, and has been used to unify, simplify, and improve most quantum algorithms. QSVT depends on precise results in representation theory, with the desired polynomial functions acting simultaneously within invariant two-dimensional subspaces of a larger Hilbert space. These two-dimensional transformations are largely determined by the related theory of quantum signal processing (QSP). While QSP appears to rely on properties specific to the compact Lie group SU(2), many other Lie groups appear naturally in physical systems relevant to quantum information. This work considers settings in which SU(1,1) describes system dynamics and finds that, surprisingly, despite the non-compactness of SU(1,1), one can recover a QSP-type ansatz, and show its ability to approximate near arbitrary polynomial transformations. We discuss various experimental uses of this construction, as well as prospects for expanded relevance of QSP-like ansätze to other Lie groups.
Quantum singular value transformation (QSVT) enables the application of polynomial functions to the singular values of near arbitrary linear operators embedded in unitary transforms, and has been used to unify, simplify, and improve most quantum algorithms. QSVT depends on precise results in representation theory, with the desired polynomial functions acting simultaneously within invariant two-dimensional subspaces of a larger Hilbert space. These two-dimensional transformations are largely determined by the related theory of quantum signal processing (QSP). While QSP appears to rely on properties specific to the compact Lie group SU(2), many other Lie groups appear naturally in physical systems relevant to quantum information. This work considers settings in which SU(1,1) describes system dynamics and finds that, surprisingly, despite the non-compactness of SU(1,1), one can recover a QSP-type ansatz, and show its ability to approximate near arbitrary polynomial transformations. We discuss various experimental uses of this construction, as well as prospects for expanded relevance of QSP-like ansätze to other Lie groups.
Quantum Signal Processing (QSP) and Quantum Singular Value Transformation (QSVT) provide an efficient framework for implementing polynomials of block-encoded matrices, and thus offer a systematic approach to quantum algorithm design. However, despite a number of recent advances, important limitations remain. In particular, QSP can only transform unitary matrices, by applying a polynomial to their eigenvalues, while QSVT is a singular-value transformation and thus one can only obtain the polynomial of Hermitian matrices. As a consequence, these techniques do not directly apply to an arbitrary non-Hermitian matrix that is not diagonalizable. In this work, we propose a simple yet powerful method to extend these ideas to arbitrary square matrices by acting on their eigenvalues. To this end, we introduce the notion of an n-regular block encoding, namely, a block encoding whose k-th power reproduces the k-th power of the encoded matrix for every 0<k<n. We show that applying QSP to any unitary with this property is equivalent to applying a polynomial of degree at most n to the block-encoded matrix, independently of its internal structure. Moreover, we provide a simple construction that transforms any block encoding into an n-regular one using only O(logn) ancillary qubits and operations. Finally, we show that this construction induces the desired transformation on the eigenvalues associated with the Jordan normal form of the matrix; for non-diagonalizable matrices this yields the full matrix function P(A), whose action on each Jordan block involves the derivatives of P, and not merely the map λ↦P(λ).
Recent work shows that quantum signal processing (QSP) and its multi-qubit lifted version, quantum singular value transformation (QSVT), unify and improve the presentation of most quantum algorithms. QSP/QSVT characterize the ability, by alternating ansätze, to obliviously transform the singular values of subsystems of unitary matrices by polynomial functions; these algorithms are numerically stable and analytically well-understood. That said, QSP/QSVT require consistent access to a single oracle, saying nothing about computing joint properties of two or more oracles; these can be far cheaper to determine given an ability to pit oracles against one another coherently. This work introduces a corresponding theory of QSP over multiple variables: M-QSP. Surprisingly, despite the non-existence of the fundamental theorem of algebra for multivariable polynomials, there exist necessary and sufficient conditions under which a desired stable multivariable polynomial transformation is possible. Moreover, the classical subroutines used by QSP protocols survive in the multivariable setting for non-obvious reasons, and remain numerically stable and efficient. Up to a well-defined conjecture, we give proof that the family of achievable multivariable transforms is as loosely constrained as could be expected. The unique ability of M-QSP to obliviously approximate joint functions of multiple variables coherently leads to novel speedups incommensurate with those of other quantum algorithms, and provides a bridge from quantum algorithms to algebraic geometry.
Quantum functional programming has been developed through two distinct paradigms in the last few years: Quantum Signal Processing (QSP)-based methods, including the Quantum Singular Value Transformation (QSVT), and methods based on higher-order quantum transformations, such as the Universal Hamiltonian Eigenvalue Transformation (UHET). While UHET performs functional transformations of Hamiltonian dynamics, its relationship to QSP-based techniques has remained unclear despite evident structural similarities. In this work, we resolve this gap by establishing a connection between UHET and QSP-based frameworks; specifically, we show that UHET can be interpreted as a (randomised) linearisation of Generalised QSP (GQSP). Building on this result, we introduce a linearised variant of (Hamiltonian-based) QSVT, which we call Universal Hamiltonian Singular Value Transformation (UHSVT), that enables the efficient transformation of the singular values of any arbitrary matrix A encoded in a block of a Hamiltonian, whose dynamics is accessible as a black box, by any sufficiently differentiable complex-valued function f. Our algorithm requires the sole condition that f vanishes at the origin, in contrast to previous QSVT-based approaches that assumed either a lower bound on the singular values of A or the ability to perform X-rotation gates on the induced two-dimensional 'qubitised' subspace.
Quantum signal processing (QSP) and the quantum singular value transformation (QSVT) are pivotal tools for simplifying the development of quantum algorithms. These techniques leverage polynomial transformations on the eigenvalues or singular values of block-encoded matrices, achieved with the use of just one control qubit. In contexts where the control qubit is used to extract information about the eigenvalues or singular values, the amount of extractable information is limited to one bit per protocol. In this work, we extend the original QSP ansatz by introducing multiple control qubits. We show that, much like in the single-qubit case, nearly any vector of polynomials can be implemented with a multi-qubit QSP ansatz, and the gate complexity scales polynomially with the dimension of such states. Moreover, assuming that powers of the matrix to transform are easily implementable - as in Shor's algorithm - we can achieve polynomial transformations with degrees that scale exponentially with the number of control qubits. This work aims to provide a partial characterization of the polynomials that can be implemented using this approach, with phase estimation schemes and discrete logarithm serving as illustrative examples.
Quantum singular value transformation (QSVT) provides a unifying framework for quantum algorithms by applying the polynomials of quantum signal processing (QSP) to block-encoded matrices. We connect this framework with spectral analysis, design and topological protection in condensed matter physics. Extending QSVT beyond matrices to possibly infinite-dimensional operators (operator QSVT), we establish the following. First, it transforms every block of the operator by the QSP polynomials; no singular value decomposition is needed. Second, a spectral mapping theorem determines the full spectrum of the QSVT operator, including continuous spectra, from the embedded operator through the QSP polynomial, allowing spectral analysis without translation invariance. Third, the spectral mapping turns QSP into spectral design: the QSP phases can stretch, fold and separate the bands and place the eigenvalues. Finally, the kernel sectors that conventional QSVT usually sets aside carry a topological index, invariant under the choice of QSP phases, local perturbations and gap-preserving deformations, which guarantees topologically protected states. These results unify two quantum walks: Szegedy's walk from quantum algorithms and the split-step walk from condensed matter physics. Their kernel sectors encode the graph's Euler characteristic and the difference of bulk winding numbers, respectively. For the split-step walk, QSP breaks chiral symmetry but not the topological protection, and can move the protected state into a continuous band to form a bound state in the continuum (BIC).
Modern quantum algorithms are increasingly formulated as coherent procedures for implementing polynomial transformations of operators and singular values. This perspective provides a powerful and unifying language for quantum algorithm design, connecting a wide range of distinct problems through five closely related key tools: block-encoding, qubitization, QSP, QSVT and GQSP. Block-encoding embeds non-unitary matrices into larger unitaries; qubitization converts block-encodings into structured operators; QSP, QSVT and GQSP enable polynomial transformations with near-optimal query complexity. Together, these techniques form a general toolkit for transforming matrix functions into implementable quantum circuits. This paper develops these techniques from first principles as a unified framework for constructing quantum algorithms. We apply this framework to representative applications to highlight design principles and demonstrate how distinct algorithms can be constructed from a unified sequence of operator transformations.
A central contribution is a systematic decision workflow for selecting the appropriate approach according to the operator structure and the desired transformation polynomial. This perspective clarifies when direct GQSP or through qubitization, or Laurent expansion, or QSVT is most appropriate. We organize algorithmic design into an end-to-end pipeline: identifying the target matrix function, constructing an appropriate block-encoding, determining the relevant spectral domain, designing a polynomial or Laurent-polynomial approximation, synthesizing the phase factors, and translating the transformation into an executable quantum circuit. By applying this unified framework to example applications, we showcase a practical methodology for reasoning, designing, and implementing quantum algorithms based on polynomial transformations.