Abstract The use and adoption of quantum computers by the wider computing community has been impeded by the need to adopt new programming techniques. These techniques involve moving from a high-level language where the programmer can define and manipulate objects, to a quantum model where the programmer defines and configures the circuits at a gate level. A jump too far for many. Previous work by the authors aimed to ease this transition through the use of a software development kit (Qx86 SDK) that emulates a traditional CPU for execution on a quantum computer which focused on delivering the capability. This paper now presents a number of new methods that extends and improves the SDKs capability. These methods include optimizing traditional logic gate emulation, multiple gate simplification methods, reducing the number of required qubits, and alternative optimized techniques for many CPU instructions. A quantum machine code mapping method is also described to propose the emulation of a traditional/quantum hybrid CPU prototype. Whilst still orders of magnitude slower than the performance of a traditional CPU in terms of arithmetic, logic and bitwise operations, execution speed is shown to be markedly improved (in some cases by more than 1,000%) and without introducing any unrealistic requirements (that is, all execution can be performed utilizing less than 32 qubits). The usefulness of the SDK has now been enhanced as a reference guide, where the programmer/researcher can contrast traditional methods vs multiple quantum methods of execution.
Abstract The use and adoption of quantum computers by the wider computing community has been impeded by the need to adopt new programming techniques. These techniques involve moving from a high-level language where the programmer can define and manipulate objects, to a quantum model where the programmer defines and configures the circuits at a gate level. A jump too far for many. Previous work by the authors aimed to ease this transition through the use of a software development kit (Qx86 SDK) that emulates a traditional CPU for execution on a quantum computer which focused on delivering the capability. This paper now presents a number of new methods that extends and improves the SDKs capability. These methods include optimizing traditional logic gate emulation, multiple gate simplification methods, reducing the number of required qubits, and alternative optimized techniques for many CPU instructions. A quantum machine code mapping method is also described to propose the emulation of a traditional/quantum hybrid CPU prototype. Whilst still orders of magnitude slower than the performance of a traditional CPU in terms of arithmetic, logic and bitwise operations, execution speed is shown to be markedly improved (in some cases by more than 1,000%) and without introducing any unrealistic requirements (that is, all execution can be performed utilizing less than 32 qubits). The usefulness of the SDK has now been enhanced as a reference guide, where the programmer/researcher can contrast traditional methods vs multiple quantum methods of execution.
One of the major obstacles to the adoption of quantum computing is the requirement to define quantum circuits at the quantum gate level. Many programmers are familiar with high-level or low-level programming languages but not quantum gates nor the low-level quantum logic required to derive useful results from quantum computers. The steep learning curve involved when progressing from quantum gates to complex simulations such as Shor's algorithm has proven too much for many developers. The purpose of this paper and the software presented within, addresses this challenge by providing a Software Development Kit (SDK), translation layer, emulator and a framework of techniques for executing Intel 8080/Z80 assembler on a quantum computer, i.e. all salient points of CPU execution, logic, arithmetic and bitwise manipulation will be executed on the quantum computer using quantum circuits. This provides a novel means of displaying the equivalency and interoperability of quantum and classical computers. Developers and researchers can use the SDK to write code in Intel 8080/Z80 assembler which is executed locally via traditional emulation and remotely on a quantum computer in parallel. The emulator features side-by-side code execution with visibility of the running quantum circuit and re-usable/overridable methods. This enables programmers to learn, reuse and contrast techniques for performing any traditional CPU based technique/instruction on a quantum computer; e.g. a programmer may know how to multiply and perform checks on a classical CPU but is not able to perform the same tasks in a quantum implementation, this SDK allows the programmer to pick and choose the methods they would like to use to fulfil their requirements. The SDK makes use of open-source software, specifically Python and Qiskit for the emulation, translation, API calls and execution of user supplied code or binaries.
Quantum chemistry and materials science are among the most promising areas for demonstrating algorithmic quantum advantage and quantum utility due to their inherent quantum mechanical nature. Still, large-scale simulations of quantum circuits are essential for determining the problem size at which quantum solutions outperform classical methods. In this work, we present a novel hybrid simulation approach, forming a hybrid of a fullstate and a Clifford simulator, specifically designed to address the computational challenges associated with the time evolution of quantum chemistry Hamiltonians. Our method focuses on the efficient emulation of multi-qubit rotations, a critical component of Trotterized Hamiltonian evolution. By optimizing the representation and execution of multi-qubit operations leveraging the Pauli frame, our approach significantly reduces the computational cost of simulating quantum circuits, enabling more efficient simulations. Beyond its impact on chemistry applications, our emulation strategy has broad implications for any computational workload that relies heavily on multi-qubit rotations. By increasing the efficiency of quantum simulations, our method facilitates more accurate and cost-effective studies of complex quantum systems. We quantify the performance improvements and computational savings for this emulation strategy, and we obtain a speedup of a factor ≈18 (≈22 with MPI) for our evaluated chemistry Hamiltonians with 24 qubits. Thus, we evaluate our integration of this emulation strategy into the Intel Quantum SDK, further bridging the gap between theoretical algorithm development and practical quantum software implementations.
Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) have been used in most of the physics sub-fields for various unique purposes. This includes particle physics, quantum optics, and, more recently, quantum computing. FPGAs boast many benefits over previous experimental and computational setups. They are versatile, easy to program, and cost-effective, leading to an understandable desire to incorporate them into the new field of quantum computing. While FPGAs have been used to help control the readout and control of physical qubits, they can also be a good tool for improving algorithm simulations, which is the focus of this paper. Different algorithms have different computational limits because of the varying operations and circuit depth levels. Due to the ease of incorporating parallel processes and the ability to optimize FPGAs on a deeper level, we can speed up computationally expensive operations, increasing the size of the quantum circuits we can simulate. This paper aims to provide an educational walkthrough for quantum computing physicists interested in taking advantage of FPGAs in their research. Our findings indicate that an inexpensive FPGA with a clock rate of 100MHz can perform simple, unoptimized matrix operations on the order of 107 ns faster than a CPU using optimized Python libraries. This can be further improved upon using more expensive hardware and optimized designs. This will provide many researchers and students with the tools needed to study quantum algorithms without the need for costly hardware.
Traditional compiler optimization focuses on maximizing performance within the constraints of classical architectures. However, quantum computing presents a fundamentally different paradigm, demanding a new approach to software optimization. This paper proposes a hardware-aware compiler optimization technique, inspired by quantum computing principles, to bridge the gap between high-level programming languages and the specific characteristics of quantum hardware. The core idea is to translate high-level code into quantum circuits while explicitly considering factors like qubit connectivity, gate fidelity, and decoherence. This approach allows for optimization strategies tailored to the unique limitations and opportunities of quantum devices, potentially leading to significant performance improvements compared to generic quantum compilation methods. The compiler operates by analyzing the algorithmic complexity, identifying quantum-native operations, and strategically mapping them onto the available quantum hardware, thereby minimizing the impact of hardware constraints. This paper outlines the framework, key components, and potential optimizations within this hardware-aware compiler.
With rapid advancement in quantum computing technology, continuous efforts are being directed to simulation and emulation of quantum algorithms on classical platforms. A well-known limitation to classical emulation of quantum circuits is scalability. Existing hardware emulators implement gate-based circuit models of quantum circuits that result in heavy resource utilization and degrade the scalability of the system. Also, current quantum emulation hardware use fixedpoint arithmetic, which has an adverse effect on accuracy when the system is scaled up. In this work, we employ a complexmultiply-and-accumulate (CMAC) and lookup-based emulation approach that greatly reduces resource utilization and improves system scalability in terms of number of emulated qubits. We demonstrate emulation of up to 16 fully-entangled qubits which is highest among existing work. We design fully-pipelined, highthroughput hardware architectures that use floating-point precision for higher accuracy. Experimental evaluation and analysis of the architectures in terms of speed and area is also provided. The emulator is prototyped on a high-performance reconfigurable computing (HPRC) system and our results demonstrate quantitative improvement over existing Field-Programmable-Gate-Array (FPGA)-based hardware emulators.
The rapid development of quantum computing technology has led to an increasing need for efficient and accessible programming tools that can bridge the gap between classical and quantum computing paradigms. In this paper, we introduce the Intel®Quantum SDK, a powerful software development kit designed to facilitate hybrid quantum-classical programming using the C++ Quantum Extension. The SDK provides a comprehensive set of tools and libraries that enable developers to harness the power of quantum computing while leveraging their existing knowledge of classical programming techniques. By incorporating quantum algorithms and operations within a familiar C++ framework, the Intel Quantum SDK empowers programmers to create innovative hybrid applications that can tackle complex problems and drive advancements in various fields, including cryptography, optimization, and materials science. This paper will guide readers through the essential concepts, features, and capabilities of the Intel Quantum SDK. This seamless integration of quantum and classical programming paradigms paves the way for the development of innovative and efficient solutions to complex computational challenges, ultimately driving the advancement of quantum computing technology and its real-world applications.