Non-adaptive measurement-based quantum computation on IBM Q.

We test the quantumness of IBM's quantum computer IBM Quantum System One in Ehningen, Germany. We generate generalised n-qubit GHZ states and measure Bell inequalities to investigate the n-party entanglement of the GHZ states. The implemented Bell inequalities are derived from non-adaptive measurement-based quantum computation (NMQC), a type of quantum computing that links the successful computation of a non-linear function to the violation of a multipartite Bell-inequality. The goal is to compute a multivariate Boolean function that clearly differentiates non-local correlations from local hidden variables (LHVs). Since it has been shown that LHVs can only compute linear functions, whereas quantum correlations are capable of outputting every possible Boolean function it thus serves as an indicator of multipartite entanglement. Here, we compute various non-linear functions with NMQC on IBM's quantum computer IBM Quantum System One and thereby demonstrate that the presented method can be used to characterize quantum devices. We find a violation for a maximum of seven qubits and compare our results to an existing implementation of NMQC using photons.

Bell-state measurement exceeding 50% success probability with linear optics.

Bell-state projections serve as a fundamental basis for most quantum communication and computing protocols today. However, with current Bell-state measurement schemes based on linear optics, only two of four Bell states can be identified, which means that the maximum success probability of this vital step cannot exceed 50%. Here, we experimentally demonstrate a scheme that amends the original measurement with additional modes in the form of ancillary photons, which leads to a more complex measurement pattern, and ultimately a higher success probability of 62.5%. Experimentally, we achieve a success probability of (57.9 ± 1.4)%, a substantial improvement over the conventional scheme. With the possibility of extending the protocol to a larger number of ancillary photons, our work paves the way toward more efficient realizations of quantum technologies based on Bell-state measurements.

Distinguishability and Many-Particle Interference.

Quantum interference of two independent particles in pure quantum states is fully described by the particles' distinguishability: the closer the particles are to being identical, the higher the degree of quantum interference. When more than two particles are involved, the situation becomes more complex and interference capability extends beyond pairwise distinguishability, taking on a surprisingly rich character. Here, we study many-particle interference using three photons. We show that the distinguishability between pairs of photons is not sufficient to fully describe the photons' behavior in a scattering process, but that a collective phase, the triad phase, plays a role. We are able to explore the full parameter space of three-photon interference by generating heralded single photons and interfering them in a fiber tritter. Using multiple degrees of freedom-temporal delays and polarization-we isolate three-photon interference from two-photon interference. Our experiment disproves the view that pairwise two-photon distinguishability uniquely determines the degree of nonclassical many-particle interference.

A two-qubit photonic quantum processor and its application to solving systems of linear equations.

Large-scale quantum computers will require the ability to apply long sequences of entangling gates to many qubits. In a photonic architecture, where single-qubit gates can be performed easily and precisely, the application of consecutive two-qubit entangling gates has been a significant obstacle. Here, we demonstrate a two-qubit photonic quantum processor that implements two consecutive CNOT gates on the same pair of polarisation-encoded qubits. To demonstrate the flexibility of our system, we implement various instances of the quantum algorithm for solving of systems of linear equations.

Demonstration of blind quantum computing.

Quantum computers, besides offering substantial computational speedups, are also expected to preserve the privacy of a computation. We present an experimental demonstration of blind quantum computing in which the input, computation, and output all remain unknown to the computer. We exploit the conceptual framework of measurement-based quantum computation that enables a client to delegate a computation to a quantum server. Various blind delegated computations, including one- and two-qubit gates and the Deutsch and Grover quantum algorithms, are demonstrated. The client only needs to be able to prepare and transmit individual photonic qubits. Our demonstration is crucial for unconditionally secure quantum cloud computing and might become a key ingredient for real-life applications, especially when considering the challenges of making powerful quantum computers widely available.