Multi-level Quantum Simulation

Quantum simulators have the potential to study quantum chromodynamics (QCD) in regimes inaccessible to classical methods and thus could lead to discoveries in high-energy and nuclear physics. Quantum hardware, typically consisting of a collection of coupled two-level systems aka quantum bits or qubits, is becoming more powerful and experiments are able to map increasingly complex lattice gauge theories to quantum simulators. In addition to the high error rates and limited system size, one fundamental challenge is that the digitization of continuous gauge fields can be very inefficient when the symmetry of the field does not naturally map to the Hilbert space of the device. We are developing a qudit simulator based on superconducting circuits that uses multiple levels per site and therefore more naturally mimics the underlying structure of a digitized gauge theory. Our central hypothesis is that a qudit simulator can yield significant advantages over their qubit counterparts when simulating lattice gauge theories.

Funded projects

“A Qudit quantum simulator for nuclear physics based on superconducting circuits.”
Department of Energy – Open Sollicitation