Experimental boson sampling

Tillmann, Max; Dakić, Borivoje; Heilmann, René; Nolte, Stefan; Szameit, Alexander; Walther, Philip

doi:10.1038/nphoton.2013.102

Cited by 729 publications

(707 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…1a). While several groups have already realized small-scale versions of boson sampling [13][14][15][16], to challenge the ECT one also has to demonstrate the scalability of the experimental architecture [17,18].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Boson sampling for molecular vibronic spectra

et al. 2015

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Quantum computers are expected to be more efficient in performing certain computations than any classical machine. Unfortunately, the technological challenges associated with building a fullscale quantum computer have not yet allowed the experimental verification of such an expectation. Recently, boson sampling has emerged as a problem that is suspected to be intractable on any classical computer, but efficiently implementable with a linear quantum optical setup. Therefore, boson sampling may offer an experimentally realizable challenge to the Extended Church-Turing thesis and this remarkable possibility motivated much of the interest around boson sampling, at least in relation to complexity-theoretic questions. In this work, we show that the successful development of a boson sampling apparatus would not only answer such inquiries, but also yield a practical tool for difficult molecular computations. Specifically, we show that a boson sampling device with a modified input state can be used to generate molecular vibronic spectra, including complicated effects such as Duschinsky rotations.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Boson sampling for molecular vibronic spectra

et al. 2015

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“…However, largescale universal quantum computers are yet to be built. Boson sampling 1 is a rudimentary quantum algorithm tailored to the platform of linear optics, which has sparked interest as a rapid way to demonstrate such quantum supremacy [2][3][4][5][6] . Photon statistics are governed by intractable matrix functions, which suggests that sampling from the distribution obtained by injecting photons into a linear optical network could be solved more quickly by a photonic experiment than by a classical computer.…”

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confidence: 99%

Classical boson sampling algorithms with superior performance to near-term experiments

et al. 2017

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It is predicted that quantum computers will dramatically outperform their conventional counterparts. However, largescale universal quantum computers are yet to be built. Boson sampling 1 is a rudimentary quantum algorithm tailored to the platform of linear optics, which has sparked interest as a rapid way to demonstrate such quantum supremacy 2-6 . Photon statistics are governed by intractable matrix functions, which suggests that sampling from the distribution obtained by injecting photons into a linear optical network could be solved more quickly by a photonic experiment than by a classical computer. The apparently low resource requirements for large boson sampling experiments have raised expectations of a near-term demonstration of quantum supremacy by boson sampling 7,8 . Here we present classical boson sampling algorithms and theoretical analyses of prospects for scaling boson sampling experiments, showing that near-term quantum supremacy via boson sampling is unlikely. Our classical algorithm, based on Metropolised independence sampling, allowed the boson sampling problem to be solved for 30 photons with standard computing hardware. Compared to current experiments, a demonstration of quantum supremacy over a successful implementation of these classical methods on a supercomputer would require the number of photons and experimental components to increase by orders of magnitude, while tackling exponentially scaling photon loss.It is believed that new types of computing machines will be constructed to exploit quantum mechanics for an exponential speed advantage in solving certain problems compared with classical computers 9 . Recent large state and private investments in developing quantum technologies have increased interest in this challenge. However, it is not yet experimentally proven that a large computationally useful quantum system can be assembled, and such a task is highly non-trivial given the challenge of overcoming the effects of errors in these systems.Boson sampling is a simple task which is native to linear optics and has captured the imagination of quantum scientists because it seems possible that the anticipated supremacy of quantum machines could be demonstrated by a near-term experiment. The advent of integrated quantum photonics 10 has enabled large, complex, stable and programmable optical circuitry 11,12 , while recent advances in photon generation [13][14][15] and detection 16,17 have also been impressive. The possibility to generate many photons, evolve them under a large linear optical unitary transformation, then detect them, seems feasible, so the role of a boson sampling machine as a rudimentary but legitimate computing device is particularly appealing. Compared to a universal digital quantum computer, the resources required for experimental boson sampling appear much less demanding. This approach of designing quantum algorithms to demonstrate computational supremacy with nearterm experimental capabilities has inspired a raft of proposals suited to different hardware platforms [18]...

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“…Ensembles of single photons in linear optical circuits are a recently proposed example: despite being non-interacting particles, their detection statistics are described by functions that are intractable to classical computers -matrix permanents [2]. It is therefore believed that linear optics constitutes a platform for the efficient sampling of probability distributions that cannot be simulated by classical computers, with strong evidence provided in the case of circuits described by large random matrices [3][4][5][6][7].A universal quantum computer, running for example Shor's factoring algorithm [8], creates an exponentially large probability distribution with individual peaks at highly regular intervals that facilitate the solution to the factoring problem allowing efficient classical verification, as is the case for all problems in the NP complexity class [9]. Accordingly, correct operation of the quantum computer is confirmed.…”

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confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

On the experimental verification of quantum complexity in linear optics

Carolan¹,

et al. 2014

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The first quantum technologies to solve computational problems that are beyond the capabilities of classical computers are likely to be devices that exploit characteristics inherent to a particular physical system, to tackle a bespoke problem suited to those characteristics. Evidence implies that the detection of ensembles of photons, which have propagated through a linear optical circuit, is equivalent to sampling from a probability distribution that is intractable to classical simulation. However, it is probable that the complexity of this type of sampling problem means that its solution is classically unverifiable within a feasible number of trials, and the task of establishing correct operation becomes one of gathering sufficiently convincing circumstantial evidence. Here, we develop scalable methods to experimentally establish correct operation for this class of sampling algorithm, which we implement with two different types of optical circuits for 3, 4, and 5 photons, on Hilbert spaces of up to 50, 000 dimensions. With only a small number of trials, we establish a confidence > 99% that we are not sampling from a uniform distribution or a classical distribution, and we demonstrate a unitary specific witness that functions robustly for small amounts of data. Like the algorithmic operations they endorse, our methods exploit the characteristics native to the quantum system in question. Here we observe and make an application of a "bosonic clouding" phenomenon, interesting in its own right, where photons are found in local groups of modes superposed across two locations. Our broad approach is likely to be practical for all architectures for quantum technologies where formal verification methods for quantum algorithms are either intractable or unknown.The construction of a universal quantum computer, capable of implementing any quantum computation or quantum simulation, is a major long term experimental objective. However, it is expected that non-universal quantum machines, that exploit characteristics of their own physical system to solve specific problems, will outperform classical computers in the near-term [1]. Ensembles of single photons in linear optical circuits are a recently proposed example: despite being non-interacting particles, their detection statistics are described by functions that are intractable to classical computers -matrix permanents [2]. It is therefore believed that linear optics constitutes a platform for the efficient sampling of probability distributions that cannot be simulated by classical computers, with strong evidence provided in the case of circuits described by large random matrices [3][4][5][6][7].A universal quantum computer, running for example Shor's factoring algorithm [8], creates an exponentially large probability distribution with individual peaks at highly regular intervals that facilitate the solution to the factoring problem allowing efficient classical verification, as is the case for all problems in the NP complexity class [9]. Accordingly, correct operation of the...

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Experimental boson sampling

Cited by 729 publications

References 37 publications

Boson sampling for molecular vibronic spectra

Boson sampling for molecular vibronic spectra

Classical boson sampling algorithms with superior performance to near-term experiments

On the experimental verification of quantum complexity in linear optics

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