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arXiv:quant-ph/0502101 · Physical Review A

Thresholds for linear optics quantum computing with photon loss at the detectors

Marcus Palmer Da Silva, Martin Rötteler, Christof Zalka

Published Sep 6, 2005• 14 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

In order to place an upper bound on the tolerable amount of photon loss at the detectors, we calculate the error threshold for the linear optics quantum computing proposal by Knill, Laflamme, and Milburn [Nature (London) 409, 46 (2001)] under an error model where photon detectors have efficiency $<100%$ but all other components---such as single photon sources, beam splitters, and phase shifters---are perfect and introduce no errors. We make use of the fact that the error model induced by the lossy hardware is that of an erasure channel, i.e., the error locations are always known. Using a method based on a Markov chain description of the error correction procedure, our calculations show that, with the 7 qubit Calderbank--Shor--Steane quantum code, the gate error threshold for fault tolerant quantum computation is bounded below by a value between 1.78% and 11.5% depending on the construction of the entangling gates.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.72.032307

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In order to place an upper bound on the tolerable amount of photon loss at the detectors, we calculate the error threshold for the linear optics quantum computing proposal by Knill, Laflamme, and Milburn [Nature (London) 409, 46 (2001)] under an error model where photon detectors have efficiency <100<100%<100 but all other components---such as single photon sources, beam splitters, and phase shifters---are perfect and introduce no errors. We make use of the fact that the error model induced by the lossy hardware is that of an erasure channel, i.e., the error locations are always known. Using a method based on a Markov chain description of the error correction procedure, our calculations show that, with the 7 qubit Calderbank--Shor--Steane quantum code, the gate error threshold for fault tolerant quantum computation is bounded below by a value between 1.78% and 11.5% depending on the construction of the entangling gates.
Using an error models motivated by the Knill, Laflamme, Milburn proposal for efficient linear optics quantum computing [Nature 409,46--52, 2001], error rate thresholds for erasure errors caused by imperfect photon detectors using a 7 qubit code are derived and verified through simulation. A novel method -- based on a Markov chain description of the erasure correction procedure -- is developed and used to calculate the recursion relation describing the error rate at different encoding levels from which the threshold is derived, matching threshold predictions by Knill, Laflamme and Milburn [quant-ph/0006120, 2000]. In particular, the erasure threshold for gate failure rate in the same order as the measurement failure rate is found to be above 1.78%.
Quantum computing is an exciting field that promises great improvements to our ability to solve certain intractable classes of problem. Implementing a quantum computer will require a physical system in which quantum effects are strongly evident. Many different physical systems have been proposed for this task, including ion traps, quantum dots, neutral atoms and photons. This thesis focuses on optical implementations of a quantum computer, and specifically on single-photon designs, as opposed to those utilising coherent states. Photonic systems have shown a great deal of promise for quantum computing tasks since it was shown by Knill, Laflamme and Milburn (KLM) that scalable efficient quantum computing could be performed using only linear optical elements and measurement. This was made viable through the use of error-correcting codes. The work in this thesis covers the use of error-correcting codes in single-photon linear optics quantum computing (LOQC). The central feature of these schemes is the parity code introduced by KLM and used to overcome the gate errors that are inherent in this type of LOQC. First is a discussion of an improved scheme that incorporates the fusion gates used in Browne and Rudolph's cluster state proposal in order to simplify the encoding and gate procedures. This results in high-probability gates with a resource usage comparable to the cluster state schemes. The remainder of the thesis examines the application of further error correcting codes to handle other errors that may arise in any practical implementation of an optical quantum computer. The most significant type of error in any optical system is photon loss, and hence an extension of the parity code is presented that allows loss errors to be detected and corrected. Procedures for performing universal quantum computation whilst employing this encoding are also described. These enable the establishment of loss thresholds for parity-state based LOQC, revealing this code is capable of handling up to 10\% loss in all elements during general computation, or 17\% if it is used solely as an active memory. Although loss is the most common type of optical error, other types of error will also become an issue when attempting to produce large quantum computing systems. An analysis of the error thresholds and resource usage which can be expected when applying a general error correcting code such as the Steane code to this type of LOQC system is also presented. The error thresholds and resource requirements established are greater than those found for cat state optical quantum computing, but fall below those calculated for cluster states. However, the resource requirements of the scheme are significantly smaller than the cluster state requirements for an equivalent circuit. Finally, a new experiment is proposed, achievable with today's technology, for testing the loss-tolerant encoding described earlier. Expansions of the experiment that would demonstrate tolerance of actual experimental error are also discussed.
The scalability of photonic implementations of fault-tolerant quantum computing based on Gottesman-Kitaev-Preskill (GKP) qubits is injured by the requirements of inline squeezing and reconfigurability of the linear optical network.In this work we propose a topologically error-corrected architecture that does away with these elements at no cost-in fact, at an advantage-to state preparation overheads.Our computer consists of three modules: a two-dimensional (2D) array of probabilistic sources of GKP states; a depthfour circuit of static beam splitters, phase shifters, and short delay lines; and a 2D array of homodyne detectors.The symmetry of our proposed circuit allows us to combine the effects of finite squeezing and uniform photon loss within the noise model, resulting in more comprehensive threshold estimates.These jumps over both architectural and analytical hurdles considerably expedite the construction of a photonic quantum computer.
Linear optical quantum computing (LOQC) seems attractively simple: Information is borne entirely by light and processed by components such as beam splitters, phase shifters, and detectors.However, this very simplicity leads to limitations, such as the lack of deterministic entangling operations, which are compensated for by using substantial hardware overheads.Here, we quantify the resource costs for full-scale LOQC by proposing a specific protocol based on the surface code.With the caveat that our protocol can be further optimized, we report that the required number of physical components is at least 5 orders of magnitude greater than in comparable matter-based systems.Moreover, the resource requirements grow further if the per-component photon-loss rate is worse than 10 -3 or the per-component noise rate is worse than 10 -5 .We identify the performance of switches in the network as the single most influential factor influencing resource scaling.
The experiments described in this thesis form an investigation into the path towards establishing the requirements of quantum computing in a linear optical system. Our qubits are polarisation encoded photons for which the basic operations of quantum computing, single qubit rotations, are a well understood problem. The difficulty lies in the interaction of photons. To achieve these we use measurement induced non-linearities. The first experiment in this thesis describes the thorough characterisation of a controlled-sign gate based on such non-linearities. The photons are provided as pairs generated through parametric down-conversion, and as such share correlations unlikely to carry over into large scale implementations of the future. En route to such larger circuits, a characterisation of the actions of the controlled-sign gate is conducted, when the input qubits have been generated independently from each other, revealing a large drop in process fidelity. To explore the cause of this degradation of the gate performance a thorough and highly accurate model of the gate is derived including the realistic description of faulty circuitry, photon loss and multi-photon emission by the source. By simulating the effects of the various noise sources individually, the heretofore largely ignored multi-photon emission is identified as the prime cause of the degraded gate performance, causing a drop in fidelity nearly three times as large as any other error source. I further draw the first comparison between the performance of an experimental gate to the error probabilities per gate derived as thresholds for fault-tolerant quantum computing. In the absence of a single vigourous threshold value, I compare the gate performance to the models that yielded the highest threshold to date as an upper bound and to the threshold of the Gremlin-model, which allows for the most general errors. Unsurprisingly this comparison reveals that the implemented gate is clearly insufficient, however just remedying the multi-photon emission error will allow this architecture to move to within striking distance of the boundary for fault-tolerant quantum computing. The utilised methodology can be applied to any gate in any architecture and can, combined with a suitable model of the noise sources, become an important guide for developments required to achieve fault tolerant quantum computing. The final experiment on the path towards linear optical quantum computing is the demonstration of a pair of basic versions of Shor's algorithm which display the essential entanglement for the algorithm. The results again highlight the need for extensive measurements to reveal the fundamental quality of the implemented algorithm, which is not accessible with limited indicative measurements. In the second part of the thesis, I describe two experiments on other forms of entanglement by extending the actions of a Fock-State filter, a filter that is capable of attenuating single photon states stronger than multi-photon states, to produce entangled states. Furthermore this device can be used in conjunction with standard wave-plates to extend the range of operations possible on the bi-photonic qutrit space, showing that this setup suffices to produce any desired qutrit state, thereby giving access to new measurement capabilities and in the process creating and proving the first entanglement between a qubit and a qutrit.
Linear optics with photon counting is a prominent candidate for practical quantum computing. The protocol by Knill, Laflamme, and Milburn [2001, Nature (London) 409, 46] explicitly demonstrates that efficient scalable quantum computing with single photons, linear optical elements, and projective measurements is possible. Subsequently, several improvements on this protocol have started to bridge the gap between theoretical scalability and practical implementation. The original theory and its improvements are reviewed, and a few examples of experimental two-qubit gates are given. The use of realistic components, the errors they induce in the computation, and how these errors can be corrected is discussed.