Abstract The problem of determining the linear independence for a vector system arises in quantum mechanics in the context of the unambiguous state discrimination and other postselective transformations. For several copies of the same set of quantum states, the conditions of linear independence are known, whereas in this paper we consider tensor product for two general sets of vectors. We obtain a necessary and sufficient condition for the linear independence of the tensor product of two vector systems.
Abstract The problem of determining the linear independence for a vector system arises in quantum mechanics in the context of the unambiguous state discrimination and other postselective transformations. For several copies of the same set of quantum states, the conditions of linear independence are known, whereas in this paper we consider tensor product for two general sets of vectors. We obtain a necessary and sufficient condition for the linear independence of the tensor product of two vector systems.
We give a unified treatment of quantum operations which transform one set of pure states into a another pure set. Extremal cases are deterministic transformations, which have unit success probability, and unambiguous state discrimination, which reveals the state and has the lowest success probability for a fixed initial ensemble. We obtain necessary and, for linearly independent initial states, sufficient conditions for the realisability of a given transformation with a fixed probability of success for each state. We then examine the relationship between deterministic transformations, majorization and distinguishability.
Quantum computing is fundamentally based on the mathematical structure of complex Hilbert spaces, linear operators, tensor products, and unitary transformations. Among these concepts, tensor products provide the formal mechanism for constructing the state space of composite quantum systems, whereas linear and unitary operators describe quantum transformations, measurements, and computational gates. This article examines the mathematical relationship between linear operators and tensor products and analyzes their role in the formation, manipulation, and characterization of quantum entanglement. Particular attention is given to two-qubit systems, separable and entangled states, Schmidt decomposition, controlled operations, and the role of non-factorizable operators in quantum circuits. The analysis demonstrates that tensor products perform a dual function: they provide the mathematical representation of composite systems and enable the construction of local operations acting on individual subsystems. At the same time, genuinely entangling transformations, such as the controlled-NOT operation, cannot in general be represented as a single tensor product of independent local operators. Recent research further demonstrates that tensor-product and operator-Schmidt decompositions can be used to characterize operator entanglement, reduce circuit complexity, and construct efficient representations of quantum processes. The results establish that linear algebra and tensor-product structures are not merely formal tools but constitute the mathematical foundation connecting quantum entanglement with quantum computation.
A set of quantum states can be unambiguously discriminated if and only if they are linearly independent. However, for a linearly dependent set, if C copies of the state are available, then the resulting C particle states may form a linearly independent set, and be amenable to unambiguous discrimination. We obtain one necessary and one sufficient condition for the possibility of unambiguous discrimination among N states given that C copies are available and that the single copies span a D-dimensional space. These conditions are found to be identical for qubits. We then examine in detail the linearly dependent trine ensemble. The set of C>1 copies of each state is a set of linearly independent lifted trine states. The maximum unambiguous discrimination probability is evaluated for all C>1 with equal a priori probabilities.
Quantum computing operates in three stages: (i) preparation of the initial states of the n qubits of a register, (ii) step by step transformation of the state of this register by unitary operators which compose the quantum program, and (iii), measurement of all or some of the qubits of the register. The existence of quantum algorithms which are exponentially less complex than their classical counterparts for some classes of problems, stems from entangled states established by multi-qubit unitary operators within the quantum program. A register of n qubits is a quantum system composed of n quantum subsystems. The state |/spl psi/> of a quantum system composed of two quantum subsystems A and B is said to be entangled when |/spl psi/> is not reducible to a pair composed of a state |/spl psi/> of A and a state |/spl psi//sub B/> of B: such situations have no counterpart in the classical world. In quantum theory, such a pair of states is denoted by a tensor product: |/spl psi/> is entangled if it cannot be factorized into the tensor product |/spl psi//sub A/>/spl ominus/|/spl psi//sub B/>. This paper establishes conditions according to which it is possible to tell whether or not the state of a register of n qubits is entangled. The state of a single qubit is a vector /spl alpha/|0>+/spl beta/|1> of unit norm in a 2-dimensional vector space, where |0> and |1> are the two basis states and where a and are complex amplitudes. Then, if both A and B are qubits, the most general form of the state of a register composed of the 2 qubits A and B is also a vector of unit norm, but now in a 4-dimensional space: |/spl psi/>=/spl alpha/|00>+/spl beta/|01+/spl gamma/|10>+/spl sigma/|11>. It is straightforward to prove that |/spl psi/> can be factorized into |/spl psi//sub A/>/spl ominus/|/spl psi//sub B/> if and only if /spl alpha//spl delta/=/spl beta//spl gamma/. In such a case, |/spl psi/> is said to be separable, i.e. not entangled. This paper generalizes this form of condition to registers of n qubits. If |/spl psi/> is the state of a register of n qubits, two different questions about the separability of |/spl psi/> are answered: (i) is |/spl psi/> separable into a product |/spl psi//sub 1/>/spl ominus/|/spl psi//sub 2/>/spl ominus/L/spl ominus/|/spl psi//sub n/> of n single qubit states? and (ii), is |/spl psi/> separable into a product |/spl psi//sub A/>/spl ominus/|/spl psi//sub B/> of the states of two subregisters A and B, respectively containing p and q adjacent qubits with p+q=n? For both questions, necessary and sufficient conditions are given.
Abstract—In this paper, we consider the problem of unambiguous discrimination between a set of linearly independent pure quantum states. We show that the design of the optimal measurement that minimizes the probability of an inconclusive result can be formulated as a semidefinite programming problem. Based on this formulation, we develop a set of necessary and sufficient conditions for an optimal quantum measurement. We show that the optimal measurement can be computed very efficiently in polynomial time by exploiting the many well-known algorithms for solving semidefinite programs, which are guaranteed to converge to the global optimum. Using the general conditions for optimality, we derive necessary and sufficient conditions so that the measurement that results in an equal probability of an inconclusive result for each one of the quantum states is optimal. We refer to this measurement as the equal-probability measurement (EPM). We then show that for any state set, the prior probabilities of the states can be chosen such that the EPM is optimal. Finally, we consider state sets with strong symmetry properties and equal prior probabilities for which the EPM is optimal. We first consider geometrically uniform (GU) state sets that are defined over a group of unitary matrices and are generated by a single generating vector. We then consider compound GU state sets which are generated by a group of unitary matrices using multiple generating vectors, where the generating vectors satisfy a certain (weighted) norm constraint. Index Terms—Compound geometrically uniform (CGU) quantum states, equal-probability measurement (EPM), geometrically uniform (GU) quantum states, quantum detection, semidefinite programming, unambiguous discrimination. I.