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arXiv:2307.16757 · Physical Review Research

Thermodynamically optimal information gain in finite-time measurement

Rihito Nagase, Takahiro Sagawa

Published Sep 3, 2024• 10 citations
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Abstract

The tradeoff relation between speed and cost is a central issue in designing fast and efficient information processing devices. We derive an achievable bound on thermodynamic cost for obtaining information through finite-time (non-quasi-static) measurements. Our proof is based on optimal transport theory, which enables us to identify the explicit protocol to achieve the obtained bound. Moreover, we demonstrate that the optimal protocol can be approximately implemented by an experimentally feasible setup with quantum dots. Our results would lead to design principles of high-speed and low-energy-cost information processing. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

DOI
10.1103/physrevresearch.6.033239

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The Landauer's principle, a cornerstone of information thermodynamics, provides a fundamental lower bound on the energetic cost of information erasure in terms of the information content change. However, its traditional formulation is largely confined to systems exchanging solely energy with an ideal thermal bath. In this work, we derive general information-cost trade-off relations that go beyond the scope of Landauer's principle by developing a thermodynamic inference approach based on the maximum entropy principle. These relations require only information about the system and are applicable to complex quantum scenarios involving multiple conserved charges and non-thermal environments. Specifically, we present two key results: (i) In scenarios where only the mean values of observables are accessible, we derive an information-content-informed upper bound on the thermodynamic cost which complements an existing generalized Landauer lower bound. (ii) When second-order fluctuations can also be measured, we obtain an information-content-informed lower bound on the change in variances of observables, thereby extending the Landauer's principle to constrain higher-order fluctuation costs. We numerically validate our information-cost trade-off relations using a coupled-qubit system exchanging energy and excitations, a driven qubit implementing an information erasure process, and a driven double quantum dot system that can operate as an inelastic heat engine. Our results underscore the broad utility of maximum-entropy inference in constraining thermodynamic costs for generic finite-time quantum processes, with direct relevance to quantum information processing and quantum thermodynamic applications.
Abstract Information engines harness measurement and feedback to convert energy into useful work. In this study, we investigate the fundamental trade-offs between ergotropic output power, thermodynamic efficiency and information-to-work conversion efficiency in such engines, explicitly accounting for the finite time required for measurement. As a model engine, we consider a two-level quantum system from which work is extracted via a temporarily coupled quantum harmonic oscillator that serves as the measurement device. This quantum device is subsequently read out by a classical apparatus. We compute trade-offs for the performance of the information engine using Pareto optimisation, which has recently been successfully used to optimise performance in engineering and biological physics. Our results offer design principles for future experimental implementations of information engines, such as in nano-mechanical systems and circuit quantum electrodynamics (QED) platforms.
We derive an operationally defined lower bound on the physical time Δt \Delta t Δtrequired to execute any information-processing task, based on the total entropy produced ΔΣ \Delta\Sigma ΔΣ. The central result, Δt≥τΣΔΣ \Delta t \geq \tau_{\Sigma} \Delta\Sigma Δt≥τΣ​ΔΣ, introduces the Process-Dependent Dissipation Timescale τΣ≡1/⟨Σ˙⟩max \tau_{\Sigma} \equiv 1/\langle \dot{\Sigma} \rangle_{\text{max}} τΣ​≡1/⟨Σ˙⟩max​, which quantifies the maximum achievable entropy production rate for a given physical platform. We derive τΣ \tau_{\Sigma} τΣ​ from microscopic system-bath models and validate our framework against experimental data from superconducting qubit platforms. Crucially, we obtain a Measurement Entropic Time Bound:Δtmeas≥τΣkB[H(P)−S(ρ)] \Delta t_{\text{meas}} \geq \tau_{\Sigma} k_{\text{B}}[H(P) - S(\rho)] Δtmeas​≥τΣ​kB​[H(P)−S(ρ)], relating measurement time to information gained. Comparison with IBM and Google quantum processors shows agreement within experimental uncertainties. This framework provides a thermodynamic interpretation of quantum advantage as reduced entropy production per logical inference and suggests concrete optimization strategies for quantum hardware design.
We consider how the theory of optimal quantum measurements determines the maximum information available to the receiving party of a quantum key distribution (QKD) system employing linearly independent but nonorthogonal quantum states. Such a setting is characteristic of several practical QKD protocols. Due to nonorthogonality, the receiver is not able to discriminate unambiguously between the signals. To understand the fundamental limits that this imposes, the quantity of interest is the maximum mutual information between the transmitter (Alice) and the receiver, whether legitimate (Bob) or an eavesdropper (Eve). To find the optimal measurement—taken individually or collectively—we use a framework based on operator algebra and general results derived from singular-value decomposition, achieving optimal solutions for von Neumann measurements and positive operator-valued measures (POVMs). The formal proof and quantitative analysis elaborated for two signals allow us to conclude that optimal von Neumann measurements are uniquely defined and provide a higher information gain compared to POVMs. Interestingly, collective measurements not only do not provide additional information gain with respect to individual ones but also suffer from a gain reduction in the case of POVMs. Published by the American Physical Society 2024
Many problems in quantum information theory can be formulated as optimizations over the sequential outcomes of dynamical systems subject to unpredictable external influences. Such problems include many-body entanglement detection through adaptive measurements, computing the maximum average score of a preparation game over a continuous set of target states, and limiting the behavior of a (quantum) finite-state automaton. In this work, we introduce tractable relaxations of this class of optimization problems. To illustrate their performance, we use them to: (a) compute the probability that a finite-state automaton outputs a given sequence of bits; (b) develop a new many-body entanglement-detection protocol; and (c) let the computer an adaptive protocol for magic state detection. As we further show, the maximum score of a sequential problem in the limit of infinitely many time steps is in general incomputable. Nonetheless, we provide general heuristics to bound this quantity and show that they provide useful estimates in relevant scenarios. Published by the American Physical Society 2024