Quantum logic gate synthesis as a Markov decision process
Abstract Reinforcement learning has witnessed recent applications to a variety of tasks in quantum programming. The underlying assumption is that those tasks could be modeled as Markov decision processes (MDPs). Here, we investigate the feasibility of this assumption by exploring its consequences fo...
| Main Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2023-10-01
|
| Series: | npj Quantum Information |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41534-023-00766-w |
| _version_ | 1797557495817830400 |
|---|---|
| author | M. Sohaib Alam Noah F. Berthusen Peter P. Orth |
| author_facet | M. Sohaib Alam Noah F. Berthusen Peter P. Orth |
| author_sort | M. Sohaib Alam |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Reinforcement learning has witnessed recent applications to a variety of tasks in quantum programming. The underlying assumption is that those tasks could be modeled as Markov decision processes (MDPs). Here, we investigate the feasibility of this assumption by exploring its consequences for single-qubit quantum state preparation and gate compilation. By forming discrete MDPs, we solve for the optimal policy exactly through policy iteration. We find optimal paths that correspond to the shortest possible sequence of gates to prepare a state or compile a gate, up to some target accuracy. Our method works in both the absence and presence of noise and compares favorably to other quantum compilation methods, such as the Ross–Selinger algorithm. This work provides theoretical insight into why reinforcement learning may be successfully used to find optimally short gate sequences in quantum programming. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T17:17:42Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e9b508c5ced645aaad367743c0ef9a19 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2056-6387 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T17:17:42Z |
| publishDate | 2023-10-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | npj Quantum Information |
| spelling | doaj.art-e9b508c5ced645aaad367743c0ef9a192023-11-20T10:28:18ZengNature Portfolionpj Quantum Information2056-63872023-10-019111010.1038/s41534-023-00766-wQuantum logic gate synthesis as a Markov decision processM. Sohaib Alam0Noah F. Berthusen1Peter P. Orth2Superconducting Quantum Materials and Systems Center (SQMS), Fermi National Accelerator LaboratoryAmes National LaboratorySuperconducting Quantum Materials and Systems Center (SQMS), Fermi National Accelerator LaboratoryAbstract Reinforcement learning has witnessed recent applications to a variety of tasks in quantum programming. The underlying assumption is that those tasks could be modeled as Markov decision processes (MDPs). Here, we investigate the feasibility of this assumption by exploring its consequences for single-qubit quantum state preparation and gate compilation. By forming discrete MDPs, we solve for the optimal policy exactly through policy iteration. We find optimal paths that correspond to the shortest possible sequence of gates to prepare a state or compile a gate, up to some target accuracy. Our method works in both the absence and presence of noise and compares favorably to other quantum compilation methods, such as the Ross–Selinger algorithm. This work provides theoretical insight into why reinforcement learning may be successfully used to find optimally short gate sequences in quantum programming.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41534-023-00766-w |
| spellingShingle | M. Sohaib Alam Noah F. Berthusen Peter P. Orth Quantum logic gate synthesis as a Markov decision process npj Quantum Information |
| title | Quantum logic gate synthesis as a Markov decision process |
| title_full | Quantum logic gate synthesis as a Markov decision process |
| title_fullStr | Quantum logic gate synthesis as a Markov decision process |
| title_full_unstemmed | Quantum logic gate synthesis as a Markov decision process |
| title_short | Quantum logic gate synthesis as a Markov decision process |
| title_sort | quantum logic gate synthesis as a markov decision process |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41534-023-00766-w |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT msohaibalam quantumlogicgatesynthesisasamarkovdecisionprocess AT noahfberthusen quantumlogicgatesynthesisasamarkovdecisionprocess AT peterporth quantumlogicgatesynthesisasamarkovdecisionprocess |