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Physica Scripta

Digital quantum simulations of Hong-Ou-Mandel interference

Navaneeth Krishnan Mohan, Rikteem Bhowmick, Devesh Kumar, Rohit Chaurasiya

Published Feb 18, 2025• 5 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Abstract Quantum computers can efficiently simulate quantum systems evolving according to local interactions, making them valuable for exploring quantum many-body dynamics, despite current hardware and algorithmic challenges. In this work, we address the digital quantum simulations of linear optical elements which are inherently bosonic quantum systems. We adopt an encoding scheme based on Gray code to map bosonic states to qubits, which is efficient in terms of qubits and gate counts. Using a beam splitter as a representative example, we demonstrate the construction of quantum algorithms to simulate linear optical elements in quantum computers. To validate our algorithm, we performed a digital quantum simulation of the Hong-Ou-Mandel interference, a two-photon experiment. Our simulations, conducted both in quantum simulators and IBM quantum hardwares, successfully reproduced the characteristics of Hong-Ou-Mandel interference, validating our approach.

DOI
10.1088/1402-4896/adb7a1

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Abstract Quantum computers can efficiently simulate quantum systems evolving according to local interactions, making them valuable for exploring quantum many-body dynamics, despite current hardware and algorithmic challenges. In this work, we address the digital quantum simulations of linear optical elements which are inherently bosonic quantum systems. We adopt an encoding scheme based on Gray code to map bosonic states to qubits, which is efficient in terms of qubits and gate counts. Using a beam splitter as a representative example, we demonstrate the construction of quantum algorithms to simulate linear optical elements in quantum computers. To validate our algorithm, we performed a digital quantum simulation of the Hong-Ou-Mandel interference, a two-photon experiment. Our simulations, conducted both in quantum simulators and IBM quantum hardwares, successfully reproduced the characteristics of Hong-Ou-Mandel interference, validating our approach.
Digital quantum simulation is the process of simulating the dynamics of a physical system by a programmable quantum computer. The universality of quantum computers makes it possible to simulate any quantum system, whether fermionic or bosonic. In this work, we discuss the application of digital quantum simulations to simulate a ubiquitous bosonic system, a beam splitter. To perform the boson-to-qubit mapping, we used the gray code, whose superiority over other encoding schemes has been shown recently. We validated our quantum circuit that mimics the action of a beam splitter by simulating the Hong-Ou-Mandel interference experiment. We simulated the experiment in both quantum simulators and actual quantum backends and were able to observe the HOM interference.
Extending an existing quantum optic model for beamsplitters, a comprehensive model is developed from the first principles of quantum physics to describe photons traversing linear optical devices of arbitrary number of ports and even a circuit of devices, which are essential components of photonic quantum computing gates and circuits. The model derives the quantum operators and states of the photons at the egress ports of a device, gate or circuit from those at the ingress ports. As an application and validation, it is used to model the experiment that discovered the Hong-Ou-Mandel (HOM) effect and to explain the effect without the notion of quantum interference. The experiment is not only a landmark in the research of quantum optics but also important to photonic quantum computing design.
Digital quantum simulation (DQS) has emerged as a powerful approach to investigate complex quantum systems using digital quantum computers. Such systems, like many-particle bosonic systems and intricate optical experimental setups, pose significant challenges for classical simulation methods. In this paper, we utilize a general formalism for the DQS of bosonic systems, which consists of mapping bosonic operators to Pauli operators using the Gray code, in order to simulate interferometric variants of Afshar’s experiment—an intricate optical experiment—on IBM’s quantum computers. We investigated experiments analogous to Afshar’s double-slit experiment performed by Unruh and Pessoa Júnior, exploring discussions on the apparent violation of Bohr’s complementarity principle when considering the entire experimental setup. Based on the aforementioned experiments, we construct a variation of a delayed-choice setup. We also explore another experiment starting with a two-photon initial state. Finally, we analyze these experiments within the framework of an updated quantum complementarity principle, which applies to specific quantum state preparations and remains consistent with the foundational principles of Quantum Mechanics.
We provide and discuss examples of quantum circuits for simulating the behavior of optical and photonic devices, especially those present in quantum communication setups. Examples include decoherence effects in optical fibers, two-photon (Hong-Ou-Mandel) interference in a beamsplitter - including the case where multiple degrees of freedom are involved - and representation of weak coherent states. Moreover, we discuss the modelling of practical non-ideal characteristics of threshold single-photon detectors, namely, the quantum efficiency and the dark count rate.
Abstract One of the fastest growing areas of interest in quantum computing is its use within machine learning methods, in particular through the application of quantum kernels. Despite this large interest, there exist very few proposals for relevant physical platforms to evaluate quantum kernels. In this article, we propose and simulate a protocol capable of evaluating quantum kernels using Hong–Ou–Mandel interference, an experimental technique that is widely accessible to optics researchers. Our proposal utilises the orthogonal temporal modes of a single photon, allowing one to encode multi-dimensional feature vectors. As a result, interfering two photons and using the detected coincidence counts, we can perform a direct measurement and binary classification. This physical platform confers an exponential quantum advantage also described theoretically in other works. We present a complete description of this method and perform a numerical experiment to demonstrate a sample application for binary classification of classical data.
Abstract The parameters of a quantum system grow exponentially with the number of involved quantum particles. Hence, the associated memory requirement to store or manipulate the underlying wavefunction goes well beyond the limit of the best classical computers for quantum systems composed of a few dozen particles, leading to serious challenges in their numerical simulation. This implies that the verification and design of new quantum devices and experiments are fundamentally limited to small system size. It is not clear how the full potential of large quantum systems can be exploited. Here, we present the concept of quantum computer designed quantum hardware and apply it to the field of quantum optics. Specifically, we map complex experimental hardware for high-dimensional, many-body entangled photons into a gate-based quantum circuit. We show explicitly how digital quantum simulation of Boson sampling experiments can be realized. We then illustrate how to design quantum-optical setups for complex entangled photonic systems, such as high-dimensional Greenberger–Horne–Zeilinger states and their derivatives. Since photonic hardware is already on the edge of quantum supremacy and the development of gate-based quantum computers is rapidly advancing, our approach promises to be a useful tool for the future of quantum device design.