arXiv:quant-ph/0703190 · Physical Review Letters
Decoherence of an n -Qubit Quantum Memory
T. Gorin, Carlos Pineda, T. H. Seligman
Abstract
We analyze decoherence of a quantum register in the absence of nonlocal operations, i.e., n noninteracting qubits coupled to an environment. The problem is solved in terms of a sum rule which implies linear scaling in the number of qubits. Each term involves a single qubit and its entanglement with the remaining ones. Two conditions are essential: first, decoherence must be small, and second, the coupling of different qubits must be uncorrelated in the interaction picture. We apply the result to a random matrix model, and illustrate its reach considering a Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger state coupled to a spin bath.