We implement an experiment on a photonic quantum processor establishing efficacy of the elementary quantum system in classical information storage. The advantage is established by considering a class of simple bipartite games played with the communication resource qubit and classical bit (c bit), respectively. Conventional wisdom, supported by the no-go theorems of Holevo and Frenkel-Weiner, suggests that such a quantum advantage is unattainable when the sender and receiver share randomness or classical correlations. However, our results reveal a quantum advantage in a scenario devoid of any shared randomness. Our experiment involves the development of a variational triangular polarimeter, enabling the realization of positive operator value measurements crucial for establishing the targeted quantum advantage. Beyond showcasing a robust communication advantage with a single qubit, our work paves the way for immediate applications in near-term quantum technologies. It provides a semi-device-independent certification scheme for quantum encoding-decoding systems and offers an efficient method for information loading and transmission in quantum networks.
We implement an experiment on a photonic quantum processor establishing efficacy of the elementary quantum system in classical information storage. The advantage is established by considering a class of simple bipartite games played with the communication resource qubit and classical bit (c bit), respectively. Conventional wisdom, supported by the no-go theorems of Holevo and Frenkel-Weiner, suggests that such a quantum advantage is unattainable when the sender and receiver share randomness or classical correlations. However, our results reveal a quantum advantage in a scenario devoid of any shared randomness. Our experiment involves the development of a variational triangular polarimeter, enabling the realization of positive operator value measurements crucial for establishing the targeted quantum advantage. Beyond showcasing a robust communication advantage with a single qubit, our work paves the way for immediate applications in near-term quantum technologies. It provides a semi-device-independent certification scheme for quantum encoding-decoding systems and offers an efficient method for information loading and transmission in quantum networks.
We analyze utility of communication channels in absence of any short of quantum or classical correlation shared between the sender and the receiver. To this aim, we propose a class of two-party communication games, and show that the games cannot be won given a noiseless 1 -bit classical channel from the sender to the receiver. Interestingly, the goal can be perfectly achieved if the channel is assisted with classical shared randomness. This resembles an advantage similar to the quantum superdense coding phenomenon where pre-shared entanglement can enhance the communication utility of a perfect quantum communication line. Quite surprisingly, we show that a qubit communication without any assistance of classical shared randomness can achieve the goal, and hence establishes a novel quantum advantage in the simplest communication scenario. In pursuit of a deeper origin of this advantage, we show that an advantageous quantum strategy must invoke quantum interference both at the encoding step by the sender and at the decoding step by the receiver. We also study communication utility of a class of non-classical toy systems described by symmetric polygonal state spaces. We come up with communication tasks that can be achieved neither with 1 -bit of classical communication nor by communicating a polygon system, whereas 1 -qubit communication yields a perfect strategy, establishing quantum advantage over them. To this end, we show that the quantum advantages are robust against imperfect encodings-decodings, making the protocols implementable with presently available quantum technologies.
Abstract The extension of point-to-point communication to multi-node configurations has significant applications in internet and telecommunication networks. Quantum resources promise notable advantages in such settings. Here, we demonstrate a novel quantum advantage in simulating multiple access channels (MACs)-a common network configuration where multiple distant senders transmit messages to a single receiver (e.g. the uplink from several mobile phones to a server). Specifically, we show that qubit transmission outperforms its classical counterpart, even when the latter is supplemented with classical shared randomness. Remarkably, unlike the seminal quantum superdense coding protocol, this advantage is achieved without any pre-shared entanglement between the senders and the receiver-a feat prohibited by Holevo and Frenkel–Weiner no-go theorems in the one-sender-one-receiver scenario. The receiver’s ability to simultaneously decode quantum systems from multiple senders underpins this distinct advantage in the MAC setup. Some of our MAC designs are inspired by constructs in quantum foundations, such as the Pusey–Barrett–Rudolph theorem and ‘quantum nonlocality without entanglement’. Beyond network applications, this quantum advantage reveals a deeper connection to ‘quantum nonlocality without inputs’ phenomenon and suggests potential for semi-device-independent certification of entangled measurements.
Quantum communication can outperform classical communication in a variety of information-processing tasks, but such advantages are typically established for a fixed communication network. Here we introduce topology-independent quantum advantage, in which a quantum protocol outperforms every classical protocol subject to the same communication constraint, irrespective of how the classical communication resource is distributed among the parties or which communication topology is employed, even when the parties may share unlimited classical randomness. We first demonstrate this phenomenon through a simple three-party equality task: two senders receive ternary classical inputs, while an input-free receiver determines whether the inputs are equal. We then formulate a general framework for topology-independent communication and completely characterize the corresponding classical correlation polytope in the minimal three-party scenario. Its facet inequalities reveal several instances of topology-independent quantum advantage. Remarkably, one of these inequalities enables the semi-device-independent certification of a nonunitary quantum channel, while another certifies a sequential quantum network topology without any prior assumption about the network configuration. Finally, we extend the framework to four-party networks, characterize the relevant classical communication structures, and identify a communication task exhibiting quantum advantages against all admissible classical topologies. Our results establish topology independence as a genuine and robust form of quantum advantage in communication networks.
Communication scenarios between two parties can be implemented by first encoding messages into some states of a physical system which acts as the physical medium of the communication and then decoding the messages by measuring the state of the system. We show that already in the simplest possible scenarios it is possible to detect a definite, unbounded advantage of quantum systems over classical systems. We do this by constructing a family of operationally meaningful communication tasks, each of which, on the one hand, can be implemented by using just a single qubit but which, on the other hand, require an unboundedly larger classical system for classical implementation. Furthermore, we show that even though, with the additional resource of shared randomness, the proposed communication tasks can be implemented by both quantum and classical systems of the same size, the number of coordinated actions needed for the classical implementation also grows unboundedly. In particular, no finite storage can be used to store all the coordinated actions required to implement all possible quantum communication tasks with classical systems. As a consequence, shared randomness cannot be viewed as a free resource.
Extension of point-to-point communication model to the realm of multi-node configurations finds a plethora of applications in internet and telecommunication networks. Here, we establish a novel advantage of quantum communication in a commonly encountered network configuration known as the Multiple Access Channel (MAC). A MAC consists of multiple distant senders aiming to send their respective messages to a common receiver. Unlike the quantum superdense coding protocol, the advantage reported here is realized without invoking entanglement between the senders and the receiver. Notably, such an advantage is unattainable in traditional point-to-point communication involving one sender and one receiver, where the limitations imposed by the Holevo and Frankel Weiner no-go theorems come into play. Within the MAC setup, this distinctive advantage materializes through the receiver's unique ability to simultaneously decode the quantum systems received from multiple senders. Intriguingly, some of our MAC designs draw inspiration from various other constructs in quantum foundations, such as the Pusey-Barrett-Rudolph theorem and the concept of `nonlocality without entanglement', originally explored for entirely different purposes. Beyond its immediate applications in network communication, the presented quantum advantage hints at a profound connection with the concept of `quantum nonlocality without inputs' and holds the potential for semi-device-independent certification of entangled measurements.
Quantum mechanics enables information-processing advantages even at the level of a single qubit. A paradigmatic example is the 2$\to$1 random access code (RAC), where a qubit outperforms a classical bit in retrieving encoded information. In the standard form, however, this quantum advantage is restricted to a single receiver, since decoding measurements inevitably destroy the encoded information. Contrary to this, we address how long the information encoded in a single qubit remains accessible even after multiple decoding, each with a quantum advantage. Introducing preparation distinguishability as an operational resource associated with the sender, we show that its interplay with measurement incompatibility on the receiver's side can mitigate measurement-induced disturbance, thereby enabling an arbitrarily long sequence of receivers to each retain a quantum advantage. Our results show that, even under repeated measurements, the information encoded in a qubit need not be entirely exhausted, revealing a stronger communication feature than previously recognised.