We show that a superconducting circuit containing two loops, when treated with Macroscopic Quantum Coherence (MQC) theory, constitutes a complete two-bit quantum computer. The manipulation of the system is easily implemented with alternating magnetic fields. A \textit{universal} set of quantum gates is deemed available by means of all unitary single bit operations and a controlled-not (\textsc{cnot}) sequence. We use multi-dimensional MQC theory and time-dependent first order perturbation theory to analyze the model. Our calculations show that a two qubit arrangement, each having a diameter of 200nm, operating in the flux regime can be operated with a static magnetic field of $\sim 0.1$T, and an alternating dynamic magnetic field of amplitude $\sim 1$ Gauss and frequency $\sim 10$Hz. The operational time $τ_{op}$ is estimated to be $\sim 10$ns.
We show that a superconducting circuit containing two loops, when treated with Macroscopic Quantum Coherence (MQC) theory, constitutes a complete two-bit quantum computer. The manipulation of the system is easily implemented with alternating magnetic fields. A \textit{universal} set of quantum gates is deemed available by means of all unitary single bit operations and a controlled-not (\textsc{cnot}) sequence. We use multi-dimensional MQC theory and time-dependent first order perturbation theory to analyze the model. Our calculations show that a two qubit arrangement, each having a diameter of 200nm, operating in the flux regime can be operated with a static magnetic field of ∼0.1T, and an alternating dynamic magnetic field of amplitude ∼1 Gauss and frequency ∼10Hz. The operational time τop is estimated to be ∼10ns.
Units of superconducting circuitry that exploit the concept of the single- Cooper-pair box (SCB) have been built and are undergoing testing as prototypes of logic gates that could, in principle, constitute building blocks of clocked quantum computers. These units utilize quantized charge states as the quantum information-bearing degrees of freedom. An SCB is an artificial two-level quantum system that comprises a nanoscale superconducting electrode connected to a reservoir of Cooper-pair charges via a Josephson junction. The logical quantum states of the device, .0. and .1., are implemented physically as a pair of charge-number states that differ by 2e (where e is the charge of an electron). Typically, some 109 Cooper pairs are involved. Transitions between the logical states are accomplished by tunneling of Cooper pairs through the Josephson junction. Although the two-level system contains a macroscopic number of charges, in the superconducting regime, they behave collectively, as a Bose-Einstein condensate, making possible a coherent superposition of the two logical states. This possibility makes the SCB a candidate for the physical implementation of a qubit. A set of quantum logic operations and the gates that implement them is characterized as universal if, in principle, one can form combinations of the operations in the set to implement any desired quantum computation. To be able to design a practical quantum computer, one must first specify how to decompose any valid quantum computation into a sequence of elementary 1- and 2-qubit quantum gates that are universal and that can be realized in hardware that is feasible to fabricate. Traditionally, the set of universal gates has been taken to be the set of all 1-qubit quantum gates in conjunction with the controlled-NOT (CNOT) gate, which is a 2-qubit gate. Also, it has been known for some time that the SWAP gate, which implements square root of the simple 2-qubit exchange interaction, is as computationally universal as is the CNOT operation.
The theory of superconducting phase qubits---also known as current-biased Josephson junctions---is presented. In the first part of this thesis, I introduce quantum computation, quantum simulation, and their deep connection with symplectic integration. I then consider the fundamental many-body theory of superconductivity and Josephson junctions and show how the quantum dynamics of a single macroscopic degree of freedom, the gauge invariant phase difference, emerges. A complete study of the Hilbert space structure of such a variable is performed for the current-biased junction. The resulting resonance structure is studied in detail, using various formalisms including the WKB approximation, instanton methods, the complex scaling transformation, basis set stabilization, numerical integration, and dynamical simulation using Lie algebraic wave-packet propagation. The second part of this thesis explores how the current-biased junction can be used as an element of a quantum computer---a quantum bit (qubit). Single qubit operations are studied, followed by the presentation of the theory of coupled qubit devices. My key result is the design and optimization of quantum logic gates with high fidelity (F ~ 0.9999) for capacitively coupled phase qubits with short gate times (~ 10 ns). Finally, I examine an advanced qubit-coupling scheme, a resonant coupling method utilizing a harmonic oscillator as the auxiliary degree of freedom. The models and methods presented here have been developed in direct collaboration with an experimental program. These experiments are the first to show spectroscopic evidence for entanglement between two and three macroscopic degrees of freedom in a superconducting circuit.
We introduce a systematic formalism for two-resonator circuit QED, where two on-chip microwave resonators are simultaneously coupled to one superconducting qubit. Within this framework, we demonstrate that the qubit can function as a quantum switch between the two resonators, which are assumed to be originally independent. In this three-circuit network, the qubit mediates a geometric second-order circuit interaction between the otherwise decoupled resonators. In the dispersive regime, it also gives rise to a dynamic second-order perturbative interaction. The geometric and dynamic coupling strengths can be tuned to be equal, thus permitting to switch on and off the interaction between the two resonators via a qubit population inversion or a shifting of the qubit operation point. We also show that our quantum switch represents a flexible architecture for the manipulation and generation of nonclassical microwave field states as well as the creation of controlled multipartite entanglement in circuit QED. In addition, we clarify the role played by the geometric interaction, which constitutes a fundamental property characteristic of superconducting quantum circuits without a counterpart in quantum-optical systems. We develop a detailed theory of the geometric second-order coupling by means of circuit transformations for superconducting charge and flux qubits. Furthermore, we show the robustness of the quantum switch operation with respect to decoherence mechanisms. Finally, we propose a realistic design for a two-resonator circuit QED setup based on a flux qubit and estimate all the related parameters. In this manner, we show that this setup can be used to implement a superconducting quantum switch with available technology.
We introduce a systematic formalism for two-resonator circuit QED, where two on-chip microwave resonators are simultaneously coupled to one superconducting qubit. Within this framework, we demonstrate that the qubit can function as a quantum switch between the two resonators, which are assumed to be originally independent. In this three-circuit network, the qubit mediates a geometric second-order circuit interaction between the otherwise decoupled resonators. In the dispersive regime, it also gives rise to a dynamic second-order perturbative interaction. The geometric and dynamic coupling strengths can be tuned to be equal, thus permitting to switch on and off the interaction between the two resonators via a qubit population inversion or a shifting of the qubit operation point. We also show that our quantum switch represents a flexible architecture for the manipulation and generation of nonclassical microwave field states as well as the creation of controlled multipartite entanglement in circuit QED. In addition, we clarify the role played by the geometric interaction, which constitutes a fundamental property characteristic of superconducting quantum circuits without a counterpart in quantum-optical systems. We develop a detailed theory of the geometric second-order coupling by means of circuit transformations for superconducting charge and flux qubits. Furthermore, we show the robustness of the quantum switch operation with respect to decoherence mechanisms. Finally, we propose a realistic design for a two-resonator circuit QED setup based on a flux qubit and estimate all the related parameters. In this manner, we show that this setup can be used to implement a superconducting quantum switch with available technology.
We propose a method that implements a universal set of one- and two-quantum-bit gates for quantum computation in a system of coupled electron pairs with constant non-diagonal exchange interaction. In our proposal, suppression of the exchange interaction is performed by the continual repetition of single-spin rotations. A small g-factor difference between the electrons allows for addressing qubits and avoiding strong magnetic field pulses. Numerical experiments were performed to show that, to implement the one- and two-qubit operations, it is sufficient to change the strength of the magnetic field by a few Gauss. This introduces one and then the other electron in a resonance. To determine the evolution of the two-qubit system, we use the algorithms of optimal control theory.
We discuss the realization of a universal set of ultrafast single- and two-qubit operations with superconducting quantum circuits and investigate the most relevant physical and technical limitations that arise when pushing for faster and faster gates. With the help of numerical optimization techniques, we establish a fundamental bound on the minimal gate time, which is determined independently of the qubit design solely by its nonlinearity. In addition, important practical restrictions arise from the finite qubit transition frequency and the limited bandwidth of the control pulses. We show that, for highly anharmonic flux qubits and commercially available control electronics, elementary single- and two-qubit operations can be implemented in about 100 ps with residual gate errors below ${10}^{\ensuremath{-}4}$. Under the same conditions, we simulate the complete execution of a compressed version of Shor's algorithm for factoring the number 15 in about 1 ns. These results demonstrate that, compared to state-of-the-art implementations with transmon qubits, a hundredfold increase in the speed of gate operations with superconducting circuits is still feasible.