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Automated Search for new Quantum Experiments

Mario Krenn, Mehul Malik, Robert Fickler, Radek Lapkiewicz, and Anton Zeilinger
Phys. Rev. Lett. 116, 090405 – Published 4 March 2016
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Abstract

Quantum mechanics predicts a number of, at first sight, counterintuitive phenomena. It therefore remains a question whether our intuition is the best way to find new experiments. Here, we report the development of the computer algorithm Melvin which is able to find new experimental implementations for the creation and manipulation of complex quantum states. Indeed, the discovered experiments extensively use unfamiliar and asymmetric techniques which are challenging to understand intuitively. The results range from the first implementation of a high-dimensional Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger state, to a vast variety of experiments for asymmetrically entangled quantum states—a feature that can only exist when both the number of involved parties and dimensions is larger than 2. Additionally, new types of high-dimensional transformations are found that perform cyclic operations. Melvin autonomously learns from solutions for simpler systems, which significantly speeds up the discovery rate of more complex experiments. The ability to automate the design of a quantum experiment can be applied to many quantum systems and allows the physical realization of quantum states previously thought of only on paper.

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  • Received 30 September 2015

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.116.090405

© 2016 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

General PhysicsQuantum Information, Science & Technology

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Computer Chooses Quantum Experiments

Published 4 March 2016

Quantum weirdness is hard for humans to grasp, so researchers wrote a program to suggest experimental setups.

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Authors & Affiliations

Mario Krenn1,2,*, Mehul Malik1,2, Robert Fickler1,2,†, Radek Lapkiewicz1,2,‡, and Anton Zeilinger1,2

  • 1Vienna Center for Quantum Science and Technology (VCQ), Faculty of Physics, University of Vienna, Boltzmanngasse 5, A-1090 Vienna, Austria
  • 2Institute for Quantum Optics and Quantum Information (IQOQI), Austrian Academy of Sciences, Boltzmanngasse 3, A-1090 Vienna, Austria

  • *mario.krenn@univie.ac.at
  • Present address: Department of Physics and Max Planck Centre for Extreme and Quantum Photonics, University of Ottawa, Ottawa K1N 6N5, Canada.
  • Present address: Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw, Pasteura 5, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland.

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Issue

Vol. 116, Iss. 9 — 4 March 2016

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