This thesis introduces the language QML, a functional language for quantum computations on finite types. QML exhibits quantum data and control structures, and integrates reversible and irreversible quantum computations. The design of QML is guided by the categorical semantics: QML programs are in-terpreted by morphisms in the category FQC of finite quantum computations, which provides a constructive operational semantics of irreversible quantum computations, realisable as quantum circuits. The quantum circuit model is also given a formal categorical definition via the category FQC. QML integrates reversible and irreversible quantum computations in one language, using first order strict linear logic to make weakenings, which may lead to the collapse of the quantum wavefunction, explicit. Strict programs are free from measurement, and hence preserve superpositions and entanglement. A denotational semantics of QML programs is presented, which maps QML terms

In the formalism of measurement based quantum computation we start with a given fixed entangled state of many qubits and perform computation by applying a sequence of measurements to designated qubits in designated bases. The choice of basis for later measurements may depend on earlier measurement outcomes and the final result of the computation is determined from the classical data of all the measurement outcomes. This is in contrast to the more familiar gate array model in which computational steps are unitary operations, developing a large entangled state prior to some final measurements for the output. Two principal schemes of measurement based computation are teleportation quantum computation (TQC) and the so-called cluster model or one-way quantum computer (1WQC). We will describe these schemes and show how they are able to perform universal quantum computation. We will outline various possible relationships between the models which serve to clarify their workings. We will also discuss possible novel computational benefits of the measurement based models compared to the gate array model, especially issues of parallelisability of algorithms. 1

The treewidth of a graph is a useful combinatorial measure of how close the graph is to a tree. We prove that a quantum circuit with T gates whose underlying graph has treewidth d can be simulated deterministically in T O(1) exp[O(d)] time, which, in particular, is polynomial in T if d = O(logT). Among many implications, we show efficient simulations for quantum formulas, defined and studied by Yao (Proceedings of the 34th Annual Symposium on Foundations of Computer Science, 352–361, 1993), and for log-depth circuits whose gates apply to nearby qubits only, a natural constraint satisfied by most physical implementations. We also show that one-way quantum computation of Raussendorf and Briegel (Physical Review Letters, 86:5188– 5191, 2001), a universal quantum computation scheme with promising physical implementations, can be efficiently simulated by a randomized algorithm if its quantum resource is derived from a small-treewidth graph.

This thesis is a study of the construction and representation of typed models of quantum mechanics for use in quantum computation. We introduce logical and graphical syntax for quantum mechanical processes and prove that these formal systems provide sound and complete representations of abstract quantum mechanics. In addition, we demonstrate how these representations may be used to reason about the behaviour of quantum computational processes. Quantum computation is presently mired in low-level formalisms, mostly derived directly from matrices over Hilbert spaces. These formalisms are an obstacle to the full understanding and exploitation of quantum effects in informatics since they obscure the essential structure of quantum states and processes. The aim of this work is to introduce higher level tools for quantum mechanics which will be better suited to computation than those presently employed in the field. Inessential details of Hilbert space representations are removed and the informatic structures are presented directly. Entangled states are particularly

Abstract. Quantum measurement is universal for quantum computation (Nielsen [8], Leung [5,6], Raussendorf [13,14]). This universality allows alternative schemes to the traditional three-step organisation of quantum computation: initial state preparation, unitary transformation, measurement. In order to formalize these other forms of computation, while pointing out the role and the necessity of classical control in measurement-based computation, and for establishing a new upper bound of the minimal resources needed to quantum universality, a formal model is introduced by means of Measurement-based Quantum Turing Machines. 1

We propose and discuss two postulates on the nature of errors in highly correlated noisy physical stochastic systems. The first postulate asserts that errors for a pair of substantially correlated elements are themselves substantially correlated. The second postulate asserts that in a noisy system with many highly correlated elements there will be a strong effect of error synchronization. These postulates appear to be damaging for quantum computers.

Abstract. This work presents new interesting results in both areas of graph theory and quantum computation. It analyzes the complexity of preparation of some quantum states called graph states, and investigates the evolution of the minimal degree of a graph by a combinatorial operation introduced by Bouchet [5] called local complementation, characterizing this minimal degree using local properties and using a game introduced by Sutner [20] in relation with cellular automata and called σ-game. Then it presents a graph contraction-based algorithm that benefits of additional workspace (composed of ancillary qubits) to reduce the time complexity of the preparation of these states, and proves a timespace tradeoff T S = O(m), where m is the number of edges of the graph. The case where unitary operators are used and also the case where only measurements are available are considered. Finally, it proves upper and lower bounds on the dimension of the observables required when no additional space is available. Up to our knowledge, this is the first work that proves non trivial graph properties and use them to prove upper and lower bounds for quantum computation. 1

We propose and discuss two conjectures on the nature of informa-tion leaks (decoherence) for quantum computers. These conjectures, if (or when) they hold, are damaging for quantum error-correction as required by fault-tolerant quantum computation. The first conjecture asserts that information leaks for a pair of substantially entangled qubits are themselves substantially positively correlated. The second conjecture asserts that in a noisy quantum computer with highly entangled qubits there will be a strong effect of error synchronization. We present a more general conjecture for arbitrary noisy quantum systems: prescribing (or describing) noisy quantum systems at a state ρ is subject to error E which “tends to commute ” with every unitary operator that stabilizes ρ.

Abstract — We present a unifying approach to quantum error correcting code design that encompasses additive (stabilizer) codes, as well as all known examples of nonadditive codes with good parameters. We use this framework to generate new codes with superior parameters to any previously known. In particular, we find ((10,18, 3)) and ((10,20, 3)) codes. We also show how to construct encoding circuits for all codes within our framework. Index Terms — quantum error correction, nonadditive codes, stabilizer codes I.

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