Shortcuts to Classically Simulating Quantum Computers

Can common assumptions in the classical simulation of superconducting qubits be trusted?

Authors: Tyler Jones, Kaiah Steven, Xavier Poncini, Quantum Machine Learning Research Department at Max Kelsen

Image Credit: Shutterstock

Introduction

The endeavour to build a quantum computer (QC) is often marketed as a winner-takes-all rivalry with classical computers (CC), referred to as ‘quantum advantage’.

In reality, this is far from the truth; not only does the likely scope of problems tackled by a universal QC include only a small fraction of those currently claimed by CC, but CC itself is also one of the most effective tools for advancing QCs.

In our recent research, we examined common assumptions in the classical simulation of a leading candidate for universal quantum computation, the superconducting qubit, and discussed the conditions under which the results can be trusted.

Here, we provide a high level summary of our work — the full version is available in Physical Review Applied.

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