Nicolai Friis

Universal quantum computers are expected to generate arbitrary complex quantum states of logical qubits encoded in many physical qubits. This capability hinges on a fault-tolerantly implemented universal gate set, which no single quantum error-correction code admits transversally but which becomes accessible by joining complementary codes via lattice surgery. Here we report on the experimental generation and certification of logical genuine multipartite entanglement in a trapped-ion quantum processor using a transversally implemented universal logical gate set. The gate set is accessed via lattice surgery across two different codes and comprises a Hadamard gate on a four-qubit surface code and a doubly controlled Pauli-$Z$ ($\overline{\mathrm{CCZ}}$) gate on an eight-qubit 3D colour code. To showcase this lattice-surgery toolbox, we generate both stabiliser (Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger) and non-stabiliser ($|\overline{\mathrm{CCZ}}\rangle$) states of three logical qubits and verify their genuine multipartite entanglement--a form of correlation beyond statistical mixtures of bipartite entanglement across any bipartition. We further use these cross-code primitives to demonstrate arbitrary rotations of single logical qubits via a $\overline{\mathrm{CCZ}}$-based resource gadget accessing the full universal gate set through lattice surgery. Together, these demonstrations showcase the core building blocks of an architecture for fault-tolerant quantum computation and its ability to generate complex logical quantum states.

The ability to establish entanglement between the nodes of future quantum networks is essential for enabling a wide range of new applications in science and technology. A promising approach involves the use of a powerful central node capable of deterministically preparing arbitrary multipartite entangled states of its matter-based qubits and efficiently distributing these states to surrounding end nodes via flying photons. This central node, referred to as a ``factory node", serves as a hub for the production and distribution of multipartite entanglement. In this work, we demonstrate key functionalities of a factory node using a cavity-integrated trapped-ion quantum processor. Specifically, we program the system to generate genuinely multipartite entangled Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger (GHZ) states of three path-switchable photons and verify them using custom-designed entanglement witnesses. These photons can, in the future, be used to establish stored multipartite entanglement between remote matter-based nodes. Our results demonstrate that the well-established techniques for the deterministic preparation of entangled states of co-trapped ion qubits can be used to prepare the same states of traveling photons, paving the way for multipartite entanglement distribution in quantum local area networks.

A central concept in quantum information processing is genuine multipartite entanglement (GME), a type of correlation beyond biseparability, that is, correlations that cannot be explained by statistical mixtures of partially separable states. GME is relevant for characterizing and benchmarking complex quantum systems, and it is an important resource for applications such as quantum communication. Remarkably, it has been found that GME can be activated from multiple copies of biseparable quantum states, which do not possess GME individually. Here, we experimentally demonstrate unambiguous evidence of such GME activation from two copies of a biseparable three-qubit state in a trapped-ion quantum processor. These results not only challenge notions of quantum resources but also highlight the potential of using multiple copies of quantum states to achieve tasks beyond the capabilities of the individual copies.

Gate-based universal quantum computation is formulated in terms of two types of operations: local single-qubit gates, which are typically easily implementable, and two-qubit entangling gates, whose faithful implementation remains one of the major experimental challenges since it requires controlled interactions between individual systems. To make the most of quantum hardware it is crucial to process information in the most efficient way. One promising avenue is to use higher-dimensional systems, qudits, as the fundamental units of quantum information, in order to replace a fraction of the qubit-entangling gates with qudit-local gates. Here, we show how the complexity of multi-qubit circuits can be lowered significantly by employing qudit encodings, which we quantify by considering exemplary circuits with exactly known (multi-qubit) gate complexity. We discuss general principles for circuit compression, derive upper and lower bounds on the achievable advantage, and highlight the key role played by entanglement and the available gate set. Explicit experimental schemes for photonic as well as for trapped-ion implementations are provided and demonstrate a significant expected gain in circuit performance for both platforms.

Future quantum computers will require quantum error correction for faithful operation. The correction capabilities come with an overhead for performing fault-tolerant logical operations on the encoded qubits. One of the most resource efficient ways to implement logical operations is lattice surgery, where groups of physical qubits, arranged on lattices, can be merged and split to realize entangling gates and teleport logical information. Here, we report on the experimental realization of lattice surgery between two topologically encoded qubits in a 10-qubit ion trap quantum information processor. In particular, we demonstrate entanglement between two logical qubits and we implement logical state teleportation.

We generate and characterise entangled states of a register of 20 individually controlled qubits, where each qubit is encoded into the electronic state of a trapped atomic ion. Entanglement is generated amongst the qubits during the out-of-equilibrium dynamics of an Ising-type Hamiltonian, engineered via laser fields. Since the qubit-qubit interactions decay with distance, entanglement is generated at early times predominantly between neighbouring groups of qubits. We characterise entanglement between these groups by designing and applying witnesses for genuine multipartite entanglement. Our results show that, during the dynamical evolution, all neighbouring qubit pairs, triplets, most quadruplets, and some quintuplets simultaneously develop genuine multipartite entanglement. Witnessing genuine multipartite entanglement in larger groups of qubits in our system remains an open challenge.

We report a proof-of-principle experimental demonstration of the quantum speed-up for learning agents utilizing a small-scale quantum information processor based on radiofrequency-driven trapped ions. The decision-making process of a quantum learning agent within the projective simulation paradigm for machine learning is implemented in a system of two qubits. The latter are realized using hyperfine states of two frequency-addressed atomic ions exposed to a static magnetic field gradient. We show that the deliberation time of this quantum learning agent is quadratically improved with respect to comparable classical learning agents. The performance of this quantum-enhanced learning agent highlights the potential of scalable quantum processors taking advantage of machine learning.

A scheme that successfully employs quantum mechanics in the design of autonomous learning agents has recently been reported in the context of the projective simulation (PS) model for artificial intelligence. In that approach, the key feature of a PS agent, a specific type of memory which is explored via random walks, was shown to be amenable to quantization. In particular, classical random walks were substituted by Szegedy-type quantum walks, allowing for a speed-up. In this work we propose how such classical and quantum agents can be implemented in systems of trapped ions. We employ a generic construction by which the classical agents are `upgraded' to their quantum counterparts by nested coherent controlization, and we outline how this construction can be realized in ion traps. Our results provide a flexible modular architecture for the design of PS agents. Furthermore, we present numerical simulations of simple PS agents which analyze the robustness of our proposal under certain noise models.

We present setups for the practical realization of adding control to unknown subroutines, supplementing the existing quantum optical scheme for black-box control with a counterpart for the quantum control of the ordering of sequences of operations. We also provide schemes to realize either task using trapped ions. These practical circumventions of recent no-go theorems are based on existing technologies. We argue that the possibility to add control to unknown operations in practice is a common feature of many physical systems. Based on the proposed implementations we discuss the apparent contradictions between theory and practice.

We analyze fermionic modes as fundamental entities for quantum information processing. To this end we construct a density operator formalism on the underlying Fock space and demonstrate how it can be naturally and unambiguously equipped with a notion of subsystems in the absence of a global tensor product structure. We argue that any apparent similarities between fermionic modes and qubits are superficial and can only be applied in limited situations. In particular, we discuss the ambiguities that arise from different treatments of this subject. Our results are independent of the specific context of the fermionic fields as long as the canonical anti-commutation relations are satisfied, e.g., in relativistic quantum fields, or fermionic trapped ions.