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Reviews of Modern Physics

Catalysis in quantum information theory

Patryk Lipka-Bartosik, Henrik Wilming, Nelly H. Y. Ng

Published Jun 27, 2024• 44 citations
Publisher

Abstract

A branch of quantum information is concerned with transformations that are possible given certain resources: for example, quantum teleportation moves a quantum state from one place to another, aided by entanglement and classical communication. Certain other tasks are provably impossible. But, as surveyed in this review, a surprising fact is that some tasks become possible if another quantum state is present, even if this state is returned untouched at the end of the task. This ``quantum catalysis'' enables a large variety of interesting tasks, with applications ranging from cryptography to thermodynamics.

DOI
10.1103/revmodphys.96.025005

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A branch of quantum information is concerned with transformations that are possible given certain resources: for example, quantum teleportation moves a quantum state from one place to another, aided by entanglement and classical communication. Certain other tasks are provably impossible. But, as surveyed in this review, a surprising fact is that some tasks become possible if another quantum state is present, even if this state is returned untouched at the end of the task. This ``quantum catalysis'' enables a large variety of interesting tasks, with applications ranging from cryptography to thermodynamics.
Catalysts open up new reaction pathways that can speed up chemical reactions while not consuming the catalyst. A similar phenomenon has been discovered in quantum information science, where physical transformations become possible by utilizing a quantum degree of freedom that returns to its initial state at the end of the process. In this review, a comprehensive overview of the concept of catalysis in quantum information science is presented and its applications in various physical contexts are discussed.
Understanding the fundamental limits of state convertibility is crucial for establishing the boundaries of quantum information processing and thermodynamic efficiency. While auxiliary systems, catalysts, can facilitate otherwise impossible transformations, standard catalysis rigidly requires the auxiliary system to return to its exact initial state. In this work, we investigate the power of flexible catalysis, where the catalyst evolves through a cycle of states, restoring its initial configuration only after a finite number of steps. Focusing on the regime of fixed, finite dimensions, we analyze the capabilities of flexible catalysis within the resource theories of entanglement and quantum thermodynamics. In the context of entanglement, we derive conditions limiting flexible catalysts, yet show that flexible catalysis can be strictly more powerful than same-dimensional standard catalysis: it enables deterministic transformations achievable by no standard catalyst of the same dimension, and it strictly increases the success probability of stochastic local operations and classical communication. A similar deterministic advantage arises in quantum thermodynamics, where flexible catalysis enables state transformations that are impossible with any standard catalyst of fixed dimension and Hamiltonian but become achievable via flexible catalysis.
In this work, we address fundamental limitations of quantum teleportation-the process of transferring quantum information using classical communication and preshared entanglement. We develop a new teleportation protocol based upon the idea of using ancillary entanglement catalytically, i.e., without depleting it. This protocol is then used to show that catalytic entanglement allows for a noiseless quantum channel to be simulated with a quality that could never be achieved using only entanglement from the shared state, even for catalysts with a small dimension. On the one hand, this allows for a more faithful transmission of quantum information using generic states and fixed amount of consumed entanglement. On the other hand, this shows, for the first time, that entanglement catalysis provides a genuine advantage in a generic quantum-information processing task. Finally, we show that similar ideas can be directly applied to study quantum catalysis for more general problems in quantum mechanics. As an application, we show that catalysts can activate so-called passive states, a concept that finds widespread application, e.g., in quantum thermodynamics.
Quantum catalysis, the ability to enable previously impossible transformations by using auxiliary systems without degrading them, has emerged as a powerful tool in various resource theories. Although catalytically enabled state transformations have been formally characterized by the monotonic behavior of entropic quantifiers (e.g., the von Neumann entropy or nonequilibrium free energy), such characterizations often rely on unphysical assumptions, namely, the ability of using catalysts of infinitely large dimension. This approach offers very limited insights into the practical significance of using catalysis for quantum information processing. Here, we address this problem across a broad class of quantum resource theories. Leveraging quantum information tools beyond the asymptotic regime, we establish sufficient conditions for the existence of catalytic transformations with finite-size catalysts. We further unveil connections between finite-size catalysis and multicopy transformations. Notably, we discover a phenomenon of catalytic resonance: by carefully tailoring the catalysts's state, one can drastically reduce the required dimension of the catalyst, thus enabling efficient catalytic transformations with minimal resources. Finally, we illustrate our findings with examples from the resource theories of entanglement and thermodynamics, as well in the context of catalytic unitary transformations.
Abstract In chemistry, a catalyst is a substance which enables a chemical reaction or increases its rate, while remaining unchanged in the process. Instead of chemical reactions, quantum catalysis enhances our ability to convert quantum states into each other under physical constraints. The nature of the constraints depends on the problem under study and can arise, e.g. from energy preservation. This article reviews the most recent developments in quantum catalysis and gives a historical overview of this research direction. We focus on the catalysis of quantum entanglement and coherence, and also discuss this phenomenon in quantum thermodynamics and general quantum resource theories. We review applications of quantum catalysis and also discuss the recent efforts on universal catalysis, where the quantum state of the catalyst does not depend on the states to be transformed. Catalytic embezzling is also considered, a phenomenon that occurs if the catalyst’s state can change in the transition.
Heisenberg's uncertainty principle and recently derived many no-go theorems including the no-cloning theorem and the no-deleting theorem have corroborated the idea that we can never access quantum information without causing disturbance. Here we disprove this presumption by predicting a novel phenomenon, `quantum catalysis of information,' where a system enables an otherwise impossible task by exchanging information through a quantum communication channel. This fact implies that making use of quantum information does not always cause disturbance.