Constructing locally indistinguishable orthogonal product bases in an $m \otimes n$ system

Abstract

Recently, Zhang et al [Phys. Rev. A 92, 012332 (2015)] presented $4d-4$ orthogonal product states that are locally indistinguishable and completable in a $d\otimes d$ quantum system. Later, Zhang et al. [arXiv: 1509.01814v2 (2015)] constructed $2n-1$ orthogonal product states that are locally indistinguishable in $m\otimes n$ ($3\leq m \leq n$). In this paper, we construct a locally indistinguishable and completable orthogonal product basis with $4p-4$ members in a general $m\otimes n$ ($3\leq m \leq n$) quantum system, where $p$ is an arbitrary integer from $3$ to $m$, and give a very simple but quite effective proof for its local indistinguishability. Specially, we get a completable orthogonal product basis with $8$ members that cannot be locally distinguished in $m\otimes n$ ($3\leq m \leq n$) when $p=3$. It is so far the smallest completable orthogonal product basis that cannot be locally distinguished in a $m\otimes n$ quantum system. On the other hand, we construct a small locally indistinguishable orthogonal product basis with $2p-1$ members, which is maybe uncompletable, in $m\otimes n$ ($3\leq m \leq n$ and $p$ is an arbitrary integer from $3$ to $m$). We also prove its local indistinguishability. As a corollary, we give an uncompletable orthogonal product basis with $5$ members that are locally indistinguishable in $m\otimes n$ ($3\leq m \leq n$). All the results can lead us to a better understanding of the structure of a locally indistinguishable product basis in $m \otimes n$.