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Physical Review A

Error-tolerant parity detector of cat-state qubits based on a topological quantum phase transition

Yi‐Hao Kang, Yu Wang, Qi-Ping Su, Guo-Qiang Zhang, Wei Feng, Chui-Ping Yang

Published Jul 30, 2024• 8 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We propose a scheme for realizing parity measurement of cat-state qubits based on a topological quantum phase transition. The cat-state qubits, formed by the bosonic modes in the Kerr-nonlinear resonators with two-photon squeezing drives, couple with a superconducting qubit in the center. We demonstrate that the resonator-qubit couplings with proper strengths can induce a topological quantum phase transition when the cat-state qubits are initial in the even-parity states. The topological quantum phase transition provides an approach to distinguish the even-parity states from the odd-parity states by measuring a topological invariant, namely the Chern number. Due to the robustness of the Chern number, the scheme shows great tolerance for multiple types of disturbing factors, including the systematic errors of the control fields and the coupling strengths, the inter-resonator crosstalk, and decoherence. Therefore, the scheme may be useful to construct an error-tolerant parity detector of cat-state qubits.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.110.012463

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We propose a scheme for realizing parity measurement of cat-state qubits based on a topological quantum phase transition. The cat-state qubits, formed by the bosonic modes in the Kerr-nonlinear resonators with two-photon squeezing drives, couple with a superconducting qubit in the center. We demonstrate that the resonator-qubit couplings with proper strengths can induce a topological quantum phase transition when the cat-state qubits are initial in the even-parity states. The topological quantum phase transition provides an approach to distinguish the even-parity states from the odd-parity states by measuring a topological invariant, namely the Chern number. Due to the robustness of the Chern number, the scheme shows great tolerance for multiple types of disturbing factors, including the systematic errors of the control fields and the coupling strengths, the inter-resonator crosstalk, and decoherence. Therefore, the scheme may be useful to construct an error-tolerant parity detector of cat-state qubits.
In this paper, a one-step protocol is proposed for the parity measurement of NNN cat-state qubits which are encoded on the cat states of the modes in superconducting Kerr-nonlinear cavities. The parity measurement is performed with the help of an auxiliary qutrit. Especially, the auxiliary qutrit can (cannot) be excited to the higher-energy levels when the cat-state qubits are in the even- (odd-) parity state. By designing the Rabi frequency of the classical fields via reverse engineering and optimal control, the qutrit is driven to an excited dressed state in the even-parity case, which is robust to the systematic errors of the qutrit-cavity coupling strengths. Accordingly, the parity of the cat-state qubits can be distinguished with high accuracy by measuring the final population of the ground state of the auxiliary qutrit. Numerical simulations also show that the protocol is insensitive to the systematic errors of the classical fields, the inhomogeneity of the coupling strengths, intercavity cross talk, unwanted qutrit transitions, and decoherence. Therefore, the protocol may provide an effective approach for parity measurement of multiple cat-state qubits.
We present a systematic study of Schrödinger cat codes constructed from Kerr-type coherent states, including displaced Kerr coherent states and Barut--Girardello Kerr coherent states, each admitting two distinct families determined by the sign of the Kerr nonlinearity. By tuning the Kerr parameter and coherent-state amplitude, these states interpolate between su(2)\mathfrak{su}(2)su(2), su(1,1)\mathfrak{su}(1,1)su(1,1) coherent states, providing a unified and versatile foundation for this type of bosonic quantum error correction. Unlike standard two-component Schrödinger cat codes, where a single photon-loss event induces an uncorrectable bit-flip, the nonlinear phase-space structure of Kerr cat states enables simultaneous detection and correction of both photon-loss and dephasing errors within a unified recovery framework, with optimal recovery operations determined via convex optimization. We demonstrate that Kerr cat encodings significantly outperform conventional cat codes under combined loss and dephasing noise, and that judicious parameter optimization can suppress both error channels to a level that reduces the overhead of additional error correction layers. We further show that Kerr-deformed coherent-state manifolds under engineered two-photon driving emerge as effective steady states of driven-dissipative dynamics, with single-photon decoherence strongly suppressed and leakage outside the protected manifold appearing only as higher-order corrections in the deformation strength. Our extended formalism identifies generalized Kerr Schrödinger cat codes as promising candidates for fault-tolerant bosonic quantum computation in experimental platforms such as nonlinear photonics.
A central requirement for any quantum error correction scheme is the ability to perform quantum nondemolition measurements of an error syndrome, corresponding to a special symmetry property of the encoding scheme. It is in particular important that such a measurement does not introduce extra error mechanisms, not included in the error model of the correction scheme. In this Letter, we ensure such a robustness by designing an interaction with a measurement device that preserves the degeneracy of the measured observable. More precisely, we propose a scheme to perform continuous and quantum nondemolition measurement of photon-number parity in a microwave cavity. This corresponds to the error syndrome in a class of error correcting codes called the cat codes, which have recently proven to be efficient and versatile for quantum information processing. In our design, we exploit the strongly nonlinear Hamiltonian of a high-impedance Josephson circuit, coupling a high-Q cavity storage cavity mode to a low-Q readout one. By driving the readout resonator at its resonance, the phase of the reflected or transmitted signal carries directly exploitable information on parity-type observables for encoded cat qubits of the high-Q mode.
Realizing fault-tolerant quantum computing relies on efficient quantum error correction. Bosonic cat-state qubits offer a highly promising, hardware-efficient approach by intrinsically suppressing bit-flip errors. However, fully unlocking their potential demands fast and high-fidelity quantum nondemolition (QND) measurements. Here, we propose a high-fidelity QND readout protocol for cat-state qubits in a Kerr-nonlinear resonator utilizing an effective longitudinal interaction. By deriving analytical expressions and performing numerical simulations, we demonstrate that longitudinal readout achieves faster signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) growth and shorter measurement times than conventional dispersive readout. Furthermore, we show that injecting squeezed input states can exponentially enhance the SNR, while time-dependent coupling further reduces the measurement time. This scheme provides a robust pathway toward rapid and nondestructive measurement of cat qubits in near-term quantum processors. Reliable quantum computers require error-resistant components like cat-state qubits, along with fast, non-destructive ways to readout them. Here, the authors propose a longitudinal readout protocol for these qubits that achieves faster and higher-fidelity measurements than conventional methods.
The capability to perform parity-type measurements is a central ingredient of any fault-tolerant quantum computation architecture with protected qubits. We propose schemes to achieve continuous and quantum non-demolition measurements of a class of parity-type observables for the so-called cat-qubits. While opening new perspectives towards fault-tolerant quantum information processing with superconducting circuits, this work also explores a new regime of non-linear interactions provided by a high-impedance Josephson circuit.
Bosonic modes constitute a central resource in a wide range of quantum technologies, providing long-lived degrees of freedom for the storage, processing, and transduction of quantum information. Such modes naturally arise in platforms including circuit quantum electrodynamics, quantum acoustodynamics, and trapped-ion systems. In these architectures, coherent control and high-fidelity readout of the bosonic degrees of freedom are achieved via coupling to an auxiliary qubit. When operated in the strong dispersive regime, this interaction enables parity measurements of the mode which, in combination with phase-space displacements, constitute a standard experimental tool for full Wigner-function tomography. Here, we propose a protocol based on displaced parity measurements that allows for the preparation of a variety of bosonic quantum states. As a first example, we demonstrate the generation of squeezed states, achieving up to ~9 dB of squeezing after only three parity measurements, and show that the protocol is robust against experimental imperfections. Finally, we generalize our approach to the preparation of other paradigmatic bosonic states, including cat and Gottesman-Kitaev-Preskill states.