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arXiv:2512.14819 · Physical Review A

The entangling power of non-entangling channels

Julien Pinske, Jan Sperling, Klaus Mølmer

quant-phnucl-thSubmitted Dec 16, 2025• Announced Dec 18, 2025• 0 citations• Revised May 6, 2026 (v2)
v1 · Dec 16, 2025v2 · May 6, 2026
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Abstract

There are processes that cannot generate entanglement but may, nevertheless, amplify entanglement already present in a system. Here, we show that a non-entangling operation can increase the Schmidt number of a quantum state only if it can generate entanglement with some non-zero probability. This is in stark contrast to the case where the parties of a quantum network are only able to control their joint state by local operations and classical communication (LOCC). There, being able to apply operations probabilistically (stochastic LOCC) does not increase the Schmidt number. Our findings show that certain non-entangling operations become entangling when selecting on specific measurement outcomes. This naturally leads us to the class of stochastically non-entangling maps, being those that cannot generate entanglement even probabilistically. Intrigued by this finding, we devise a Schmidt number for quantum channels that quantifies whether a channel can generate entanglement probabilistically. Moreover, we show that a channel is non-entangling if and only if its dual map is witness-preserving -- it takes entanglement witnesses to witnesses. Based on this finding, we derive Bell-like inequalities whose violation signals that a process generates entanglement.

Journal reference
Phys. Rev. A 113, 052413 (2026)
DOI
10.1103/vy93-dnc8

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There are processes that cannot generate entanglement but may, nevertheless, amplify entanglement already present in a system. Here, we show that a non-entangling operation can increase the Schmidt number of a quantum state only if it can generate entanglement with some non-zero probability. This is in stark contrast to the case where the parties of a quantum network are only able to control their joint state by local operations and classical communication (LOCC). There, being able to apply operations probabilistically (stochastic LOCC) does not increase the Schmidt number. Our findings show that certain non-entangling operations become entangling when selecting on specific measurement outcomes. This naturally leads us to the class of stochastically non-entangling maps, being those that cannot generate entanglement even probabilistically. Intrigued by this finding, we devise a Schmidt number for quantum channels that quantifies whether a channel can generate entanglement probabilistically. Moreover, we show that a channel is non-entangling if and only if its dual map is witness-preserving -- it takes entanglement witnesses to witnesses. Based on this finding, we derive Bell-like inequalities whose violation signals that a process generates entanglement.
The dimensionality of entanglement, quantified by the Schmidt number, is a valuable resource for a wide range of quantum information processing tasks. In this work, we introduce the notion of the absolute Schmidt number, referring to states whose Schmidt number cannot be increased by any global unitary transformation. We provide a characterization of the set of arbitrary-dimensional states whose Schmidt number is invariant under all global unitaries. Our approach enables us to develop both witness-based and moment-based techniques to detect nonabsolute Schmidt number states which could provide significant operational advantages through Schmidt number enhancement by global unitaries. We next formulate two resource-theoretic measures of nonabsolute Schmidt number states, based respectively on Schmidt number witness and robustness, and demonstrate an operational utility of the latter in a channel discrimination task. Finally, we extend our analysis to quantum channels by introducing a new class of channels that possess the absolute Schmidt number property. We derive a necessary and sufficient condition for identifying when a channel has the absolute Schmidt number property, confining our analysis to the class of covariant channels.
When a quantum system is distributed to spatially separated parties, it is natural to consider how the system evolves when the parties perform local quantum operations with classical communication (LOCC). However, the structure of LOCC channels is exceedingly complex leaving many important physical problems unsolved. In this paper we consider generalized resource theories of entanglement based on different relaxations to the class of LOCC. The behavior of various entanglement measures is studied under non-entangling channels, as well as the newly introduced classes of dually non-entangling and PPT-preserving channels. In an effort to better understand the nature of LOCC bound entanglement, we study the problem of entanglement distillation in these generalized resource theories. We first show that unlike LOCC, general non-entangling maps can be superactivated, in the sense that two copies of the same non-entangling map can nevertheless be entangling. On the single-copy level, we demonstrate that every NPT entangled state can be converted into an LOCC-distillable state using channels that are both dually non-entangling and having a PPT Choi representation and that every state can be converted into an LOCC-distillable state using operations belonging to any family of polytopes that approximate LOCC. We then turn to the stochastic convertibility of multipartite pure states and show that any two states can be interconverted by any polytope approximation to the set of separable channels. Finally, as an analog to kkk-positive maps, we introduce and analyze the set of kkk-non-entangling channels.
The Schmidt number is an important kind of characterization of quantum entanglement. Quantum states with higher Schmidt numbers demonstrate significant advantages in various quantum information processing tasks. By deriving a class of k-positive linear maps based on symmetric measurements, we present new Schmidt-number witnesses of class (k + 1). By detailed example, we show that our Schmidt number witnesses identify better the Schmidt number of quantum states in high-dimensional systems. Furthermore, we note that the Fedorov ratio, which coincides with the Schmidt number for pure Gaussian states and provides a close approximation in non-Gaussian cases such as spontaneous parametric down-conversion, serves as an experimentally accessible tool for validating the proposed (k +1)-class Schmidt-number witnesses.
Non-Gaussian entanglement is a promising resource in various quantum tasks. A recently defined class identifies entanglement that cannot be generated by applying Gaussian operations to separable inputs. To further explore the entanglement in this context, we introduce a quantitative witness ENGE_{\rm NG}ENG​ in bipartite bosonic systems, which satisfies ENG=1E_{\rm NG}=1ENG​=1 for all Gaussian-entanglable states, while ENG>1E_{\rm NG}>1ENG​>1 certifies non-Gaussian entanglement. Its ceiling d=⌈ENG⌉d=\lceil E_{\rm NG}\rceild=⌈ENG​⌉ provides a lower bound on the Schmidt number irreducible by Gaussian transformations, thereby defining a natural hierarchy of non-Gaussian entanglement. For pure states, the condition is sharp and the hierarchy reflects the complexity of state learning. We benchmark the framework with some paradigmatic non-Gaussian states, such as NOON states and squeezed Kerr states, and analyze its robustness against loss. Moreover, we construct an experimentally economical NOON-type witness requiring only four density-matrix element measurements. These results establish an operationally meaningful and experimentally accessible framework for identifying non-Gaussian entanglement resources in continuous-variable quantum platforms.
Transmission of high dimensional entanglement through quantum channels is a significant area of interest in quantum information science. The certification of high dimensional entanglement is usually done through Schmidt numbers, which quantify the entanglement dimensionality of quantum states. States with high Schmidt numbers provide a larger advantage in various quantum information processing tasks compared to quantum states with low Schmidt numbers. However, the action of quantum channels may reduce the Schmidt number of transmitted states, thereby degrading their resourcefulness. Here we present a comprehensive analysis of partially entanglement breaking channels which reduce the Schmidt number of bipartite composite systems. From a resource theoretic perspective, it becomes imperative to identify channels that preserve the Schmidt number. Based on our characterization we lay down prescriptions to identify such channels which are non-resource breaking, i.e., preserve the Schmidt number. Additionally, we introduce a new class of quantum channels, termed partially entanglement annihilating channels which reduce the Schmidt number of a quantum state that is a part of a larger composite system. Finally, we study the connection between entanglement breaking, partially entanglement breaking, and partially entanglement annihilating channels.
Local operations assisted by classical communication (LOCC) play a fundamental role in the resource-theoretic formulation of entanglement theory inducing an operationally meaningful ordering in the set of entangled states. The particular class within LOCC of local unitary (LU) transformations is obviously closed under inversion. Thus, LU-equivalent states are interconvertible by LOCC and have therefore the same entanglement. For this reason LU-equivalence has been thoroughly studied in the context of entanglement theory. However, as I note here with a simple example, the converse is not true: there exist entangled states that are interconvertible by LOCC but which are not LU-equivalent. This motivates studying under which conditions LOCC interconvertibility is characterized by LU-equivalence. I provide a sufficient condition for this to hold. When one considers multipartite states with full entanglement dimensionality (as quantified by the Schmidt number vector) LOCC interconvertibility can only hold under LU-equivalence.