CSEP 590tv: Quantum Computing

Dave Bacon
June 29, 2005
Today’s Menu
Administrivia
Complex Numbers

Bra’s Ket’s and All That

Quantum Circuits
 Administrivia
Changes: slowing down.

Think: Physics without Calculus

Quantum theory with a minimal of linear algebra

In class problems: hardness on the same order of magnitude

as the homework problems.
Problem Set 1: has been posted. Anyone who didn’t get my
email about the first homework being canceled, please let me
know and we will arrange accordingly.

Mailing list: sign up on sheet being passed around.

Office Hours: Ioannis Giotis, 5:30-6:30 Wednesday in 430 CSE

 Last Week
Last week we saw that there is a big motivation for understanding
quantum computers. BIG PICTURE: understanding quantum
information processing machines is the goal of this class!

We also saw that there were there funny postulates describing

quantum systems.

This week we will be slowing down and understanding the basic

workings of quantum theory by understanding one qubit and two
qubit systems.
 Quantum Theory’s Language
“Complex linear algebra” is the language of quantum theory

Today we will go through this slowly

1. Complex numbers
2. Complex vectors
3. Bras, Kets, and all that
(in class problem)
4. Qubits
5. Measuring Qubits
6. Evolving Qubits
(in class problem)
7. Two qubits: the tensor product
8. Quantum circuits
(in class problem)
 Math
Mathematics as a series of discoveries of objects who
at first you don’t believe exist, and then after you find
out they do exist, you discover that they are actually useful!

irrational
numbers
 Complex Numbers, Definition
Complex numbers are numbers of the form
“square root of minus one”

real real

Examples:

“purely real”
“purely imaginary”

roots of
 Complex Numbers, Geometry
Complex numbers are numbers of the form
“square root of minus one”

real real

Complex plane:

real axis

imaginary axis
 Complex Numbers, Math
Complex numbers can be added

Example:

and multiplied

Example:
Complex Numbers, That * Thing
We can take the complex conjugate of a complex number

Example:

We can find its modulus

Example:
 Complex Numbers, Modulus
Modulus

Modulus is the length of the complex number in the complex

plane:

real axis

imaginary axis
 Complex Numbers, Euler
Euler’s formula

Example:

The modulus of

Some important cases:

 Complex Numbers, Phases
Euler’s formula geometrically

real axis

phase angle

imaginary axis
Multiplying phases is beautiful:

Conjugating phases is also beautiful:

 Complex Numbers, Geometry
All complex numbers can be expressed as:

real axis

modulus, magnitude
phase angle
imaginary axis
 Complex Numbers, Geometry
All complex numbers can be expressed as:

Example:

real axis
 Complex Numbers, Multiplying
All complex numbers can be expressed as:

It is easy to multiply complex numbers when they are in this form

Example:
 Complex Vectors
N dimensional complex vector is a list of N complex numbers:
is the th component of the vector

“ket” “column vector”

(we start counting at 0 because eventually N will be a
a power of 2)
Example:
3 dimensional complex vectors
 Complex Vectors, Scalar Times
Complex numbers can be multiplied by a complex number

is a complex number

Example:
3 dimensional complex vector multiplied by a complex number
 Complex Vectors, Addition
Complex numbers can be added

Addition and multiplication by a scalar:

 Complex Vectors, Addition
Examples:
 Vectors, Addition
Remember adding real vectors looks geometrically like:

We should have a similar picture in mind for complex vectors

But the components of our vector are now complex numbers

 Computational Basis
Some special vectors:

Example:
2 dimensional complex vectors (also known as: a qubit!)
 Computational Basis
Vectors can be “expanded” in the computational basis:

Example:
 Computational Basis Math

Example:
 Computational Basis Math

Example:
 Bras and Kets
For every “ket,” there is a corresponding “bra” & vice versa

Examples:
 Bras, Math
Multiplied by complex number

Example:

Added

Example:
 Computational Bras
Computational Basis, but now for bras:

Example:
 The Inner Product
Given a “bra” and a “ket” we can calculate an “inner product”

This is a generalization of the dot product for real vectors

The result of taking an inner product is a complex number

 The Inner Product

Example:

Complex conjugate of inner product:

The Inner Product in Comp. Basis

Inner product of computational basis elements:

Kronecker delta
The Inner Product in Comp. Basis

Example:
In Class Problem # 1
 Norm of a Vector
Norm of a vector:

which is always a positive real number

it is (roughly) the length of the complex vector

Example:
 Quantum Rule 1
Rule 1: The wave function of a N dimensional quantum system
is given by an N dimensional complex vector with norm equal
to one.

Example:
a valid wave function for a 3 dimensional quantum system
 Qubits
Two dimensional quantum systems are called qubits

A qubit has a wave function which we write as

Examples:
Valid qubit wave functions:

Invalid qubit wave function:

 Measuring Qubits
A bit is a classical system with two possible states, 0 and 1

A qubit is a quantum system with two possible states, 0 and 1

When we observe a qubit, we get the result 0 or the result 1

0 or 1

If before we observe the qubit the wave function of the qubit is

then the probability that we observe 0 is

and the probability that we observe 1 is

“measuring in the computational basis”
 Measuring Qubits
Example:
We are given a qubit with wave function

If we observe the system in the computational basis, then we

get outcome 0 with probability

and we get outcome 1 with probability:

 Measuring Qubits Continued
When we observe a qubit, we get the result 0 or the result 1

0 or 1

If before we observe the qubit the wave function of the qubit is

then the probability that we observe 0 is

and the new wave function for the qubit is

and the probability that we observe 1 is

and the new wave function for the qubit is

“measuring in the computational basis”

 Measuring Qubits Continued
new wave function
probability 0

probability

new wave function

1

The wave function is a description of our system.

When we measure the system we find the system in one state
This happens with probabilities we get from our description
 Measuring Qubits
Example:
We are given a qubit with wave function

If we observe the system in the computational basis, then we

get outcome 0 with probability

new wave function

and we get outcome 1 with probability:

new wave function

 Measuring Qubits
Example:
We are given a qubit with wave function

If we observe the system in the computational basis, then we

get outcome 0 with probability

new wave function

and we get outcome 1 with probability:

a.k.a never
 Quantum Rule 3
Rule 3: If we measure a N dimensional quantum system with
the wave function

in the basis, then the probability of

observing the system in the state is . After such a
measurement, the wave function of the system is
probability new wave function
0

probability new wave function

1

probability new wave function

N-1
 Matrices
A N dimensional complex matrix M is an N by N array
of complex numbers:

are complex numbers

Example:
Three dimensional complex matrix:
 Matrices, Multiplied by Scalar
Matrices can be multiplied by a complex number

Example:
 Matrices, Added
Matrices can be added

Example:
 Matrices, Multiplied
Matrices can be multiplied
 Matrices, Multiplied
Example:

Note:
Matrices and Kets, Multiplied
Given a matrix, and a column vector:

These can be multiplied to obtain a new column vector:

Matrices and Kets, Multiplied
Example:
 Matrices and Bras, Multiplied
Given a matrix, and a row vector:

These can be multiplied to obtain a new row vector:

Matrices and Bras, Multiplied
Example:
Matrices, Complex Conjugate
Given a matrix, we can form its complex conjugate by
conjugating every element:

Example:
 Matrices, Transpose
Given a matrix, we can form it’s transpose by reflecting across
the diagonal

Example:
 Matrices, Conjugate Transpose
Given a matrix, we can form its conjugate transpose by
reflecting across the diagonal and conjugating

Example:
Bras, Kets, Conjugate Transpose
Taking the conjugate transpose of a ket

gives the corresponding bra:

Similarly we can take the conjugate transpose of a bra to get

the corresponding ket:
 Unitary Matrices
A matrix is unitary if
N x N identity
matrix

Equivalently a matrix is unitary if

 Unitary Example
Conjugate:

Conjugate
transpose:
Unitary?

Yes:
 Quantum Rule 2
Rule 2: The wave function of a N dimensional quantum system
evolves in time according to a unitary matrix . If the wave
function initially is then after the evolution correspond to
the new wave function is

“Unitary Evolution”
Unitary Evolution and the Norm
Unitary evolution

What happens to the norm of the ket?

Unitary evolution does not change the length of the ket.

Normalized wave function Normalized wave function

unitary evolution
 Unitary Evolution for Qubits
Unitary evolution will be described by a two dimensional
unitary matrix

If initial qubit wave function is

Then this evolves to

Unitary Evolution for Qubits
 Single Qubit Quantum Circuits
Circuit diagrams for evolving qubits

quantum gate

input output
qubit qubit
wave wave
function function
quantum wire
single line = qubit

time
 Single Qubit Quantum Circuits
Two unitary evolutions:

measurement in the basis

Probability of outcome 0:
Probability of outcome 1:
In Class Problem #2