Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

arXiv:2603.26311

Majorana-XYZ subsystem code

Tobias Busse, Lauri Toikka

quant-phcond-mat.mes-hallcond-mat.str-elSubmitted Mar 27, 2026• Announced Mar 30, 2026• 0 citations
v1 · Mar 27, 2026v2 · Jul 14, 2026v3 · Aug 1, 2026
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We present a new type of a quantum error correction code, termed Majorana-XYZ code, where the logical quantum information scales macroscopically yet is protected by topologically non-trivial degrees of freedom. It is a $[n,k,g,d]$ subsystem code with $n=L^2$ physical qubits, $k= \lfloor L/2 \rfloor$ logical qubits, $g \sim L^2$ gauge qubits, and distance $d = L$. The physical check operations, i.e. the measurements needed to obtain the error syndrome, are $3$-local and nearest-neighbour. The code detects every 1- and 2-qubit error, and every error of weight 3 and higher (constrained by the distance) that is not a product of the 3-qubit check operations, however, these products act only on the gauge qubits leaving the code space invariant. The undetected weight-3 and higher operators are confined to the gauge group and do not affect logical information. While the code does not have local stabiliser generators, the logical qubits cannot be modified locally by an undetectable error, and in this sense the Majorana-XYZ code combines notions of both topological and local gauge codes while providing a macroscopic number of topological logical qubits. Taken as a non-gauge stabiliser code we can encode $k \sim L^2 - 3L$ logical qubits into $L^2$ physical qubits; however, the check operators then become weight $2L$. The code is derived from an experimentally promising system of Majorana fermions on the honeycomb lattice with only nearest-neighbour interactions.

Related papers

Majorana subsystem qubit codes that also correct odd-weight errors

Sourav Kundu, Ben W. Reichardt

Abstract A potential platform for topological quantum computation is the Majorana-based tetron architecture. Its building blocks are superconducting islands called tetrons, which host four Majorana zero modes. Existing error correcting codes can correct even-weight errors on tetrons. In a previous proposal by us, we had shown that incorporating tetrons in the stabilizer group allows us to correct a combination of odd-weight errors and even-weight errors on tetrons. In this work, we show that inclusion of tetrons in the gauge group lets us create subsystem codes from conventional Pauli stabilizer codes, which can correct both kinds of errors. Compared to the previous approach, the current approach lets us construct codes with fewer stabilizer generators. This leads to shorter fault-tolerant sequence length, and improves the fault-tolerant pseudothreshold by as much as 84%.

New Journal of Physics•May 3, 2024•2 citations

Fault-Tolerant Encoding of Logical Qudits in Spin Systems

Sumin Lim

Universal quantum computers require fault-tolerant logical qudits, as qudits naturally align with the simulation of multi-level physical systems. Here, we present a general framework and working examples for encoding fault-tolerant logical qudits in finite-dimensional spin systems. We construct distance-$3$, distance-$5$ codewords, and general $2t+1$-distance codes that can be implemented using a single physical qudit or a small number of coupled qudits for higher distances, while requiring a Hilbert space dimension significantly smaller than conventional constructions based on multiple logical qubits. Logical operations and error correction protocols can be implemented with polynomial scaling in the number of elementary operations. We further discuss schematic designs for physical implementation and required single-gate fidelities, which are compatible with current spin qudit platforms. This strategy provides a resource-efficient path toward realizing fault-tolerant logical qudits in finite multi-level physical systems.

quant-pharXiv:2511.06620•Physical Review A•Nov 11, 2025•0 citations

Fault-tolerant fermionic quantum computation based on color code

Ying Li

An important approach to fault-tolerant quantum computation is protecting logical information using quantum error correction. Usually, logical information is in the form of logical qubits, which are encoded in physical qubits using quantum error correction codes. Compared with qubit quantum computation, fermionic quantum computation has advantages in quantum simulations of fermionic systems, e.g., molecules. In this paper, we show that fermionic quantum computation can be universal and fault tolerant if we encode logical Majorana fermions in physical Majorana fermions. We take a color code as an example to demonstrate the universal set of fault-tolerant operations on logical Majorana fermions, and we numerically find that the fault-tolerance threshold is about $0.8%$.

arXiv:1709.06245•Physical Review A•Jul 31, 2018•18 citations

Lower overhead fault-tolerant building blocks for noisy quantum computers

Prithviraj Prabhu

Quantum computation holds the promise of solving certain complex problems exponentially faster than classical computers. However, the high prevalent noise in current quantum devices impedes the accurate execution of even basic algorithms. This can be remedied by protecting quantum information with a quantum error-correcting code, where the logical information of an algorithmic qubit is spread across multiple physical qubits. Individual quantum errors are then located and corrected by the fault-tolerant measurement of multi-qubit stabilizer operators (parity checks). Unfortunately, error correction and fault tolerance both impose large demands on the qubit overhead: hundreds to thousands of physical qubits per logical qubit. We reduce the spacetime cost of fault tolerance by redesigning key building blocks of an error-corrected quantum computer. First, we develop a combinatorial proof with flag fault tolerance that exponentially reduces the extra qubits needed to measure a stabilizer of any size, while tolerating one fault. We leverage these proofs to then design state preparation circuits for the Steane and Golay codes with 100% yield. Next, we improve error correction on a planar layout by showing that a distance-four code encoding six logical qubits protects information as well as the distance-five surface code, using one-tenth as many physical qubits. Finally, we optimize the time overhead of logical gates in surface code quantum computers by protecting measurement results with a classical code, cutting computation time by a factor of two to six. Our hardware-agnostic optimizations of fault tolerance overheads thus suggest new routes to advance the timeline of error-free quantum computing.

quant-pharXiv:2605.12385•May 13, 2026•0 citations

Fault-tolerant quantum computing with three-dimensional surface codes

Michael Vasmer

Quantum computers are far more error-prone than their classical counterparts. Therefore, to build a quantum computer capable of running large-scale quantum algorithms, we must use the techniques of quantum error correction to ensure that the computer produces the correct output even when its components are unreliable. However, the resource requirements of building such a fault-tolerant quantum computer are currently prohibitive. Here, we examine the utility of using three-dimensional (3D) surface codes in a fault-tolerant quantum computer. This family of topological error-correcting codes is a generalization of the well-known 2D surface code to three spatial dimensions. We show that certain 3D surface codes have a transversal logical non-Clifford gate. In a quantum computing architecture, a non-Clifford gate is required to achieve computational universality. Transversal gates do not entangle qubits in different codes, so they are naturally fault tolerant because they do not spread errors. Next, we consider the problem of decoding 3D surface codes. In a quantum error-correcting code, we cannot observe the qubits directly, so we measure parity-check operators to gain information about the state of the code. Decoding is the problem of estimating what error has occurred given a list of unsatisfied parity checks. We observe that 3D surface codes offer asymmetric protection against bit-flip and phase-flip errors, but in both cases, we find that a threshold error rate exists below which we can suppress logical errors by increasing the size of the code. We use our results about logical gates and decoding to propose two fault-tolerant quantum computing architectures that utilize 3D surface codes. Finally, we compare the resource requirements of our architectures with the requirements of leading quantum computing architectures based on topological codes. We find that one of our architectures may be competitive with the leading architectures, depending on the properties of the physical systems used to build the qubits.

•Dec 28, 2019•2 citations

Fault-Tolerant Operation of a Quantum Error-Correction Code

Laird Egan, Dripto M. Debroy, Crystal Noel +8 more

Quantum error correction protects fragile quantum information by encoding it into a larger quantum system. These extra degrees of freedom enable the detection and correction of errors, but also increase the operational complexity of the encoded logical qubit. Fault-tolerant circuits contain the spread of errors while operating the logical qubit, and are essential for realizing error suppression in practice. While fault-tolerant design works in principle, it has not previously been demonstrated in an error-corrected physical system with native noise characteristics. In this work, we experimentally demonstrate fault-tolerant preparation, measurement, rotation, and stabilizer measurement of a Bacon-Shor logical qubit using 13 trapped ion qubits. When we compare these fault-tolerant protocols to non-fault tolerant protocols, we see significant reductions in the error rates of the logical primitives in the presence of noise. The result of fault-tolerant design is an average state preparation and measurement error of 0.6% and a Clifford gate error of 0.3% after error correction. Additionally, we prepare magic states with fidelities exceeding the distillation threshold, demonstrating all of the key single-qubit ingredients required for universal fault-tolerant operation. These results demonstrate that fault-tolerant circuits enable highly accurate logical primitives in current quantum systems. With improved two-qubit gates and the use of intermediate measurements, a stabilized logical qubit can be achieved.

arXiv:2009.11482•Bulletin of the American Physical Society•Sep 24, 2020•54 citations
We present a new type of a quantum error correction code, termed Majorana-XYZ code, where the logical quantum information scales macroscopically yet is protected by topologically non-trivial degrees of freedom. It is a [n,k,g,d][n,k,g,d][n,k,g,d] subsystem code with n=L2n=L^2n=L2 physical qubits, k=⌊L/2⌋k= \lfloor L/2 \rfloork=⌊L/2⌋ logical qubits, g∼L2g \sim L^2g∼L2 gauge qubits, and distance d=Ld = Ld=L. The physical check operations, i.e. the measurements needed to obtain the error syndrome, are 333-local and nearest-neighbour. The code detects every 1- and 2-qubit error, and every error of weight 3 and higher (constrained by the distance) that is not a product of the 3-qubit check operations, however, these products act only on the gauge qubits leaving the code space invariant. The undetected weight-3 and higher operators are confined to the gauge group and do not affect logical information. While the code does not have local stabiliser generators, the logical qubits cannot be modified locally by an undetectable error, and in this sense the Majorana-XYZ code combines notions of both topological and local gauge codes while providing a macroscopic number of topological logical qubits. Taken as a non-gauge stabiliser code we can encode k∼L2−3Lk \sim L^2 - 3Lk∼L2−3L logical qubits into L2L^2L2 physical qubits; however, the check operators then become weight 2L2L2L. The code is derived from an experimentally promising system of Majorana fermions on the honeycomb lattice with only nearest-neighbour interactions.
Abstract A potential platform for topological quantum computation is the Majorana-based tetron architecture. Its building blocks are superconducting islands called tetrons, which host four Majorana zero modes. Existing error correcting codes can correct even-weight errors on tetrons. In a previous proposal by us, we had shown that incorporating tetrons in the stabilizer group allows us to correct a combination of odd-weight errors and even-weight errors on tetrons. In this work, we show that inclusion of tetrons in the gauge group lets us create subsystem codes from conventional Pauli stabilizer codes, which can correct both kinds of errors. Compared to the previous approach, the current approach lets us construct codes with fewer stabilizer generators. This leads to shorter fault-tolerant sequence length, and improves the fault-tolerant pseudothreshold by as much as 84%.
Universal quantum computers require fault-tolerant logical qudits, as qudits naturally align with the simulation of multi-level physical systems. Here, we present a general framework and working examples for encoding fault-tolerant logical qudits in finite-dimensional spin systems. We construct distance-333, distance-555 codewords, and general 2t+12t+12t+1-distance codes that can be implemented using a single physical qudit or a small number of coupled qudits for higher distances, while requiring a Hilbert space dimension significantly smaller than conventional constructions based on multiple logical qubits. Logical operations and error correction protocols can be implemented with polynomial scaling in the number of elementary operations. We further discuss schematic designs for physical implementation and required single-gate fidelities, which are compatible with current spin qudit platforms. This strategy provides a resource-efficient path toward realizing fault-tolerant logical qudits in finite multi-level physical systems.
An important approach to fault-tolerant quantum computation is protecting logical information using quantum error correction. Usually, logical information is in the form of logical qubits, which are encoded in physical qubits using quantum error correction codes. Compared with qubit quantum computation, fermionic quantum computation has advantages in quantum simulations of fermionic systems, e.g., molecules. In this paper, we show that fermionic quantum computation can be universal and fault tolerant if we encode logical Majorana fermions in physical Majorana fermions. We take a color code as an example to demonstrate the universal set of fault-tolerant operations on logical Majorana fermions, and we numerically find that the fault-tolerance threshold is about 0.80.8%0.8.
Quantum computation holds the promise of solving certain complex problems exponentially faster than classical computers. However, the high prevalent noise in current quantum devices impedes the accurate execution of even basic algorithms. This can be remedied by protecting quantum information with a quantum error-correcting code, where the logical information of an algorithmic qubit is spread across multiple physical qubits. Individual quantum errors are then located and corrected by the fault-tolerant measurement of multi-qubit stabilizer operators (parity checks). Unfortunately, error correction and fault tolerance both impose large demands on the qubit overhead: hundreds to thousands of physical qubits per logical qubit. We reduce the spacetime cost of fault tolerance by redesigning key building blocks of an error-corrected quantum computer. First, we develop a combinatorial proof with flag fault tolerance that exponentially reduces the extra qubits needed to measure a stabilizer of any size, while tolerating one fault. We leverage these proofs to then design state preparation circuits for the Steane and Golay codes with 100% yield. Next, we improve error correction on a planar layout by showing that a distance-four code encoding six logical qubits protects information as well as the distance-five surface code, using one-tenth as many physical qubits. Finally, we optimize the time overhead of logical gates in surface code quantum computers by protecting measurement results with a classical code, cutting computation time by a factor of two to six. Our hardware-agnostic optimizations of fault tolerance overheads thus suggest new routes to advance the timeline of error-free quantum computing.
Quantum computers are far more error-prone than their classical counterparts. Therefore, to build a quantum computer capable of running large-scale quantum algorithms, we must use the techniques of quantum error correction to ensure that the computer produces the correct output even when its components are unreliable. However, the resource requirements of building such a fault-tolerant quantum computer are currently prohibitive. Here, we examine the utility of using three-dimensional (3D) surface codes in a fault-tolerant quantum computer. This family of topological error-correcting codes is a generalization of the well-known 2D surface code to three spatial dimensions. We show that certain 3D surface codes have a transversal logical non-Clifford gate. In a quantum computing architecture, a non-Clifford gate is required to achieve computational universality. Transversal gates do not entangle qubits in different codes, so they are naturally fault tolerant because they do not spread errors. Next, we consider the problem of decoding 3D surface codes. In a quantum error-correcting code, we cannot observe the qubits directly, so we measure parity-check operators to gain information about the state of the code. Decoding is the problem of estimating what error has occurred given a list of unsatisfied parity checks. We observe that 3D surface codes offer asymmetric protection against bit-flip and phase-flip errors, but in both cases, we find that a threshold error rate exists below which we can suppress logical errors by increasing the size of the code. We use our results about logical gates and decoding to propose two fault-tolerant quantum computing architectures that utilize 3D surface codes. Finally, we compare the resource requirements of our architectures with the requirements of leading quantum computing architectures based on topological codes. We find that one of our architectures may be competitive with the leading architectures, depending on the properties of the physical systems used to build the qubits.
Quantum error correction protects fragile quantum information by encoding it into a larger quantum system. These extra degrees of freedom enable the detection and correction of errors, but also increase the operational complexity of the encoded logical qubit. Fault-tolerant circuits contain the spread of errors while operating the logical qubit, and are essential for realizing error suppression in practice. While fault-tolerant design works in principle, it has not previously been demonstrated in an error-corrected physical system with native noise characteristics. In this work, we experimentally demonstrate fault-tolerant preparation, measurement, rotation, and stabilizer measurement of a Bacon-Shor logical qubit using 13 trapped ion qubits. When we compare these fault-tolerant protocols to non-fault tolerant protocols, we see significant reductions in the error rates of the logical primitives in the presence of noise. The result of fault-tolerant design is an average state preparation and measurement error of 0.6% and a Clifford gate error of 0.3% after error correction. Additionally, we prepare magic states with fidelities exceeding the distillation threshold, demonstrating all of the key single-qubit ingredients required for universal fault-tolerant operation. These results demonstrate that fault-tolerant circuits enable highly accurate logical primitives in current quantum systems. With improved two-qubit gates and the use of intermediate measurements, a stabilized logical qubit can be achieved.