Quantum Computing (Winter 22/23)

General information:

Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Christoph Lehner
4 hours lecture + 2 hours exercises
Pass/fail only, passing determined by active participation in the exercises (see below)
Language: English
Time and place (Lecture); first lecture on October 17, 2022, 12:00 - 14:00 c.t., PHY 7.1.21
Time and place (Exercises); please also register here to participate
Link to script for lecture (updated after each lecture)
Videos of previous lecture held in Summer 2020 (need a valid UR user account)

Prerequisites:

Linear Algebra I
Quantum Mechanics I

The lecture focuses on practical applications of digital quantum computing. We will discuss the theoretical foundation and practical algorithms. We will develop a simulator of a digital quantum computer as a Python library and use it to illustrate the learned concepts. We will eventually also run quantum circuits on existing hardware such as the IBM few-qubit machines. Practical limitations of current and future hardware will be discussed.

Exercises:

Problem sets will be discussed in the exercise groups. Attendance is taken at the beginning of each exercise, where each student must declare which problems they have prepared. For each problem, out of those who prepared the problem, one person is then randomly selected to present the problem and solution. If that person is unprepared, a mark is given. Absence of the exercise group is also marked. With zero or one mark, the course is passed. With two marks, an oral exam is needed to pass. Three or more marks equal failure of class. If at the end of the semester a student has declared fewer than 50% of all problems as prepared, an oral exam is needed to pass.

Problem sets:

Problem set 1 to be discussed in week of October 31, 2022
Problem set 2 to be discussed in week of November 7, 2022
Problem set 3 to be discussed in week of November 14, 2022
Problem set 4 to be discussed in week of November 21, 2022
Problem set 5 to be discussed in week of November 28, 2022
Problem set 6 to be discussed in week of December 5, 2022
Problem set 7 to be discussed in week of December 12, 2022
Problem set 8 to be discussed in week of December 19, 2022
Problem set 9 to be discussed in week of January 9, 2023
Problem set 10 to be discussed in week of January 16, 2023
Problem set 11 to be discussed in week of January 23, 2023
Problem set 12 to be discussed in week of January 30, 2023

Literature:

Michael A. Nielsen & Isaac L. Chuang: Quantum Computation and Quantum Information

Reference code:

sqc - A simple digital quantum computer simulator
A list of adaptations and related code implemented by students is curated here.