Cambridge University Press eBooks
Loading classical data
Alexander M. Dalzell, Sam McArdle, Mario Berta, Przemyslaw Bienias, Chi-Fang Chen, András Gilyén, Connor T. Hann, Michael J. Kastoryano, Emil T. Khabiboulline, Aleksander Kubica, Grant Salton, Samson Wang, Fernando G. S. L. Brandão
Abstract
This chapter covers quantum algorithmic primitives for loading classical data into a quantum algorithm. These primitives are important in many quantum algorithms, and they are especially essential for algorithms for big-data problems in the area of machine learning. We cover quantum random access memory (QRAM), an operation that allows a quantum algorithm to query a classical database in superposition. We carefully detail caveats and nuances that appear for realizing fast large-scale QRAM and what this means for algorithms that rely upon QRAM. We also cover primitives for preparing arbitrary quantum states given a list of the amplitudes stored in a classical database, and for performing a block-encoding of a matrix, given a list of its entries stored in a classical database.