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Eliahu Cohen

Publications and source records attributed to Eliahu Cohen.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Network Topologies for QKD Networks

Quantum key distribution (QKD) is a method for distributing cryptographic keys between remote endpoints, enjoying security based on quantum physics. This paper makes a first step towards studying topologies for QKD networks. QKD networks imply several required characteristics for their reliability and efficiency. We express such properties in terms of graph structure. For the comparison of potential graphs, we describe cost functions that allow us to identify families of graphs that are reliable and efficient. To make the discussion realistic, we summarize representative field-reported QKD performance numbers and illustrate the sensitivity of secret-key rate (SKR) to a few dB of additional loss. Last, we present methods to construct large efficient graphs through connecting smaller graphs.

cs.NI

Anomalous Weak Pointer Shifts as Postselected Interference among Coarse-Grained Histories

Anomalous weak values and superoscillations allow a pointer to exhibit an effective shift outside the eigenvalue range of the measured observable. We reformulate this effect in a phase-space path-integral language. For each eigenvalue branch $a_j$ of the measured observable, {the interaction couples $a_j$ to the pointer position $\hat{x}_p$ and thereby translates the conjugate pointer momentum by $\gamma a_j$.} After postselection, {the branch-conditioned amplitudes are coherently superposed with coefficients chosen to produce a superoscillatory approximation. When this conditional amplitude acts on an initial pointer momentum wavepacket for which the finite superoscillatory-window condition is satisfied, the resulting momentum wavefunction behaves as if it had been translated by $\gamma A_w$, rather than by any of the eigenvalue-conditioned shifts $\gamma a_j$. This yields an effective path-integral representation of anomalous weak pointer shifts and motivates their interpretation in terms of interference among finite coarse-grained histories.} We discuss how this picture bears on conservation-law questions.

quant-ph

Quantum Error Mitigation with Diffusion-Like Models

Coupling between a quantum system and its environment causes decoherence by transferring information from the system to environmental degrees of freedom. When discretized in time, such interactions can be interpreted as sequences of weak measurements that provide an effective model of noisy quantum dynamics. Motivated by this picture, we propose an AI-assisted error-mitigation framework for quantum diffusion processes generated by sequential local weak measurements. The forward process progressively erases information from the input state through weak measurements performed in randomly selected Pauli bases, producing basis-dependent local dephasing and locally depolarizing dynamics on average. Machine-learning models are trained on exact synthetic density matrices to learn a channel- and distribution-specific denoising map and estimate the corresponding pre-noise state. We benchmark the approach on single-qubit states and separable and entangled multi-qubit registers. We also study distribution-dependent local-to-global reconstruction, in which local reduced density matrices are used to reconstruct the global state. This experimentally motivated setting relies on locally accessible information and is therefore compatible with noisy and distributed quantum systems. More broadly, the framework provides a hybrid classical-quantum approach for approximating non-unitary dynamics and mitigating coherence loss.

quant-ph

DO-CGI: deep-optimized illumination patterns for computational ghost imaging at low sampling ratios

Computational ghost imaging (CGI) reconstructs objects from known illumination patterns and bucket-detector measurements, but quality deteriorates at low sampling ratios (SRs). We present a deep-learning framework that optimizes grayscale diffuser patterns before reconstruction. In simulations using CIFAR-10 and MNIST images with Split Bregman reconstruction, the learned patterns outperform random patterns in peak signal-to-noise ratio and structural similarity, including at SRs below 5\%. Patterns trained on CIFAR-10 also transfer to MNIST and remain effective under moderate perturbations of the sensing matrix. These results support learned pattern design as a route to fewer CGI measurements.

physics.optics

Quantum nonlocal correlations of anomalous weak values

Violations of Bell inequalities are a hallmark of entanglement, with only entangled states capable of exceeding classical bounds in standard Bell tests. Here we analyze anomalous weak values of the CHSH-Bell operator in pre- and post-selected (PPS) quantum ensembles, using them to define separability-constrained bounds on Bell-type nonlocal correlations in the presence of post-selection. Fixing the overlap between the pre- and post-selected states, we compare three scenarios: unrestricted boundary states, one separable boundary state, and both boundary states separable. For each case, we derive both the maximal weak value for a fixed Bell operator and the maximal bound obtained by further optimizing over all CHSH operators. Our results show that post-selection and entanglement are distinct operational resources: post-selection alone can enhance correlations, but entanglement is necessary to exceed the corresponding separable PPS bounds, and their combination yields the strongest attainable correlations. Thus the separable PPS bound plays the role of a post-selected separability benchmark, distinct from the standard Bell bound. We further show that the enhancement beyond the separable bound closely tracks the concurrence of the states that optimize the bounds, identifying entanglement as the source of the additional correlation strength. Finally, we show that nonlocal weak values provide post-selected entanglement witnesses, and we give a constructive protocol that detects every pure two-qubit source state with nonzero concurrence in the ideal state-adapted setting, even in regimes where the corresponding standard CHSH entanglement test is inconclusive. More broadly, our results motivate hybrid protocols that combine post-selection and entanglement, with possible applications to improved quantum sensing, weak-value amplification, and quantum information processing.

quant-ph

On trivial Jones--Vassiliev polynomials

We develop a finite-type framework for studying the Jones polynomial and its ability to distinguish the unknot. The main difficulty is to propagate the vanishing of its finite-type coefficient layers from the natural upper degree bound down to the first potentially informative orders. To overcome this, we introduce a local clasped-twist construction whose diagrammatic reductions remain uniformly controlled even when the twist is made arbitrarily long. This separates the role of the twist length from the degree bound and permits a descending vanishing argument. A single construction transfers high-order finite-type vanishing to a long residual twist, where local smoothing relations and an anchor reproducing the original knot force vanishing at all relevant lower orders. Two constructions placed in disjoint regions then generate a controlled two-crossing family. On this family, the resulting low-order relations impose a component count after successive smoothings that contradicts the topology of a suitably chosen pair of crossings. As a consequence, every nontrivial knot has a nonzero Jones finite-type coefficient at an order bounded above by three times its crossing number. In particular, a knot whose Jones polynomial is equal to that of the unknot must itself be the unknot.

math.GM

Three-fold coincidence by stimulated parametric down-conversion

Parametric down-conversion is a widely used source of nonclassical light in quantum optics and photonic quantum technologies. While stimulated parametric down-conversion with strong classical seeds is well studied, the regime in which stimulation occurs at the single-photon level has hitherto remained largely unexplored experimentally. Here, we study continuous-wave, low-gain down-conversion seeded by a weak coherent field with an average photon number well below one per coherence time. By measuring third-order temporal correlations, we observe a clear enhancement that cannot be accounted for by spontaneous processes or accidental coincidences alone, and is consistent with stimulation involving the seed and the generated photon pair. These results provide time-domain evidence of seed-induced three-photon correlations and suggest new ways to engineer and probe multi-photon states for quantum imaging, sensing, and information processing.

quant-ph

Quantum Circuit Cutting: Complexity and Optimization

The current noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) era is characterized by substantial errors and noise, which limit the practical feasibility of deep, many-qubit circuits. To address these constraints, quantum circuit cutting has emerged as a promising tool. Recently, there has been significant research on methods for performing such cutting effectively. In this work, the duality between quantum circuits and classical graphs - specifically, directed acyclic graphs (dags) - is leveraged to analyze the complexity of finding an optimal circuit-cutting configuration that minimizes the number of cuts. After developing a rigorous graph-theoretic framework, the complexity of identifying cut locations that partition a given quantum circuit into smaller fragments is characterized. The corresponding graph-combinatorial task is then defined, and the resulting partition problem is shown to be NP-complete. Furthermore, even a simplified version of the problem, restricted to circuits composed only of one- and two-qubit gates, is shown to be NP-complete. Finally, based on these constraints, an algorithm grounded in satisfiability modulo theories (SMT) is proposed to find optimal cuts when the number of qubits per partition is bounded. This work therefore provides a complexity-theoretic characterization of cut placement and a practical solver for bounded-size decompositions.

quant-ph

Current cross-correlation spectroscopy of Majorana bound states

The clock speed of topological quantum computers based on Majorana zero mode (MZM)-supporting nanoscale devices is limited by the time taken for electrons to traverse the device. We employ the time-dependent Landauer-B{ü}ttiker transport theory for current cross-lead correlations in a superconducting nanowire junction hosting MZMs. From the time-dependent quantum noise, we are able to extract traversal times for electrons crossing the system. After demonstrating a linear scaling of traversal times with nanowire length, we present a heuristic formula for the traversal times which accurately captures their behaviour. We then connect our framework to a proposed experimental verification of this discriminant between spurious and genuine MZMs utilizing time-resolved transport measurements.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Regularization from Superpositions of Time Evolutions

Short-time approximations and path integrals can be dominated by high-energy or large-field contributions, especially in the presence of singular interactions, motivating regulators that are suppressive yet removable. Standard regulators typically impose such suppressions by hand (e.g. cutoffs, higher-derivative terms, heat-kernel smearing, lattice discretizations), while here we show that closely related smooth filters can arise as the conditional map produced by interference in a coherently controlled, postselected superposition of evolutions. A successful postselection implements a single heralded operator that is a coherent linear combination of time-evolution operators. For a Gaussian superposition of time translations in quantum mechanics, the postselected step is $V_{\sigma,\Delta t}=e^{-iH\Delta t}\,e^{-\frac12\sigma^2\Delta t^2H^2}$, i.e.\ the desired unitary step multiplied by a Gaussian energy filter suppressing energies above order $1/(\sigma\Delta t)$. This renders short-time kernels in time-sliced path-integral approximations well behaved for singular potentials, while the target unitary dynamics is recovered as $\sigma\to0$ and (for fixed $\sigma$) also as $\Delta t\to0$ at fixed $t$. In scalar QFT, a local Gaussian smearing of the quartic coupling induces a positive $(\sigma^2/2)\phi^8$ term in the Euclidean action, providing a symmetry-compatible large-field stabilizer; it is naturally viewed as an irrelevant operator whose effects can be renormalized at fixed $\sigma$ (together with a conventional UV regulator) and removed by taking $\sigma\to0$. We give short-time error bounds and analyze multi-step success probabilities.

quant-ph

Implementation and Analysis of Quantum Majority Rules under Noisy Conditions

Quantum voting, inspired by quantum game theory, provides a framework in which the quantum majority rule (QMR) constitution of Bao and Yunger Halpern [Phys. Rev. A 95, 062306 (2017)] violates the quantum analogue of Arrow's impossibility theorem. We evaluate this QMR constitution analytically on classical profile data and implement its final measurement stage as a quantum circuit, running on both noiseless simulators and noisy IBM quantum hardware to map how realistic noise deforms the resulting societal ranking distribution. Moderate-high single-qubit noise does not change the qualitative behavior of QMR, whereas strong noise shifts the distribution toward other dominant winners than the classical one. We quantify this behavior using winner-agreement rates, Condorcet-winner flip rates, and Jensen-Shannon divergence between societal ranking distributions. In a second, exploratory component, we demonstrate an explicitly entanglement-based variant of the QMR constitution that serves as a testbed for multi-voter quantum correlations under noise, which we refer to as the QMR2-inspired variant. There, GHZ-type and separable superpositions over opposite rankings have the same expectation values but respond very differently to noise. Taken together, these two components connect the abstract QMR constitution to concrete implementations on noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) devices and highlight design considerations for future quantum voting protocols.

quant-ph

Weak Value Advantage in Overcoming Noise

The weak value exhibits numerous intriguing characteristics, such as values outside the operator spectrum, leading to unexpected phenomena. Nevertheless, the measurement protocol used for measuring the weak value has been the subject of an on-going controversy. In particular, the possibility of gaining a metrological advantage using weak measurements was questioned. A rigorous characterization of this advantage when the primary system is noisy is still missing. We thus consider here the challenge of learning an unknown operator under the influence of noise on the primary system which could lead to bias in the results. For amplitude and phase damping noise channels, we prove that the weak value measurement protocol (WVMP) eliminates the bias to linear order, and this cannot be done with strong measurements. Since the WVMP makes use both of weak entanglement as well as postselection, one might suspect that the advantage is solely due to the postselection aspect of the WVMP. We prove that this is not the case, and that the same advantage of the WVMP is kept even over strong measurement protocols that are allowed to apply postselection. By this we rigorously prove for the first time the existence of settings in which the WVMP possesses a strict advantage in robustness to noise, even over strong measurements augemented with postselection. However, for some noise channels, we show that no advantage is exhibited once both measurement regimes are equipped with postselection.

quant-ph

Quantum matched filtering: breaking time-energy separability by 12 orders of magnitude

Detection of signals buried in noise is the major challenge for sensing. Classically, the optimal detector is a matched filter, whose sensitivity meets the classical limit of correlation between the filter target and the measured signal within the noise. For classical signals, the correlation is limited by the separability criterion in frequency-time. Quantum states, however are not necessarily separable, and the correlation between entangled particles can surpass the classical limits. Specifically, time-energy entangled photons can be simultaneously correlated in time difference and frequency sum with no minimum limit, potentially leading to a drastic enhancement of sensitivity for diversified sensing applications. Yet, to enjoy this quantum enhancement, a unique, global detector is needed that can recover the complete information of entanglement in a single shot, i.e. measure the combined correlated variables of time-difference and frequency-sum without measuring the individual frequencies or times. Such a global measurement could, in principle, be realized using the reverse disentangling interaction, such as sum-frequency generation (SFG), but nonlinear interactions at the single-photon level have long been prohibitively inefficient, significantly restricting practical implementations. Here we overcome this barrier: We measure simultaneously and efficiently both the frequency-sum (SFG spectrum) and the time-difference (relative group delay/dispersion) by stimulating the SFG recombination with a strong pump. We generate biphotons with extreme time-energy entanglement (octave-spanning spectrum of 113THz) and measure a relative uncertainty of time-difference and frequency-sum that violates the classical separability bound by >12 orders of magnitude. Our experiment and supporting theory pave the way for quantum sensing applications, such as quantum illumination (radar).

quant-ph

One-Query Quantum Algorithms for the Index-$q$ Hidden Subgroup Problem

The quantum Fourier transform (QFT) is central to many quantum algorithms, yet its necessity is not always well understood. We re-examine its role in canonical query problems. The Deutsch-Jozsa algorithm requires neither a QFT nor a domain group structure. In contrast, the Bernstein-Vazirani problem is an instance of the hidden subgroup problem (HSP), where the hidden subgroup has either index $1$ or $2$, and the Bernstein-Vazirani algorithm exploits this promise to solve the problem with a single query. Motivated by these insights, we introduce the index-$q$ HSP: determine whether a hidden subgroup $H \le G$ has index $1$ or $q$, and, when possible, identify $H$. We present a single-query algorithm that always distinguishes index $1$ from $q$, for any choice of abelian structure on the oracle's codomain. Moreover, with suitable pre- and post-oracle unitaries (inverse-QFT/QFT over $G$), the same query exactly identifies $H$ under explicit minimal conditions: $G/H$ is cyclic of order $q$, and the output alphabet is equipped, up to affine relabeling, with a compatible $ \mathbb{Z} / q \mathbb{Z} $ structure. These conditions hold automatically for $q \in \left\{ 2,3 \right\} $, giving unconditional single-query identification in these cases. In contrast, the Shor-Kitaev sampling approach cannot guarantee exact recovery from a single sample. Our results sharpen the landscape of one-query quantum solvability for abelian HSPs.

quant-ph

Probeless vs Probe-Based Variable-Strength Eavesdropping in Quantum Key Distribution

Quantum key distribution (QKD) is a provably secure way of generating a secret key, which can later be used for encoding and decoding information. In this paper we analyze the effects of an eavesdropper's variable-strength measurements on QKD. Two types of measurements have been considered: (i) a probe-based model, commonly referred to as a "weak measurement", in which each qubit is weakly coupled to a continuous variable probe which is later projectively measured (ii) a probeless model, usually referred to as a "partial measurement", where only a small (tunable) part of all transmitted photons is projectively measured and the rest are transmitted with no disturbance. The information gain of the eavesdropper and the quantum-bit-error-rate (QBER) are computed for each case. An experimental realization of an intercept-and-resend attack based on variable-strength partial measurements is demonstrated in a time-bin-encoded, fiber-based simplified Bennett-Brassard 1984 (BB84) protocol, which is compatible with data centers. It is shown that the measured information gain and QBER follow the theoretical curves across the full coupling range, validating the partial-measurement model and clarifying its relation to the well-known monitoring channel. Further attacks involving photon number splitting and noise injection during the calibration stage are also analyzed. The results highlight the theoretical differences between weak and partial measurements, while also demonstrating the practicality of probeless eavesdropping in the case of real-world QKD systems.

quant-ph

Two times or none?

Attempts to treat time on an equivalent footing with space in quantum mechanics have been apparently dominated by `timeless' approaches, such as the one of Page and Wootters, which allow meaningful discussion of a `time operator'. However, there is an alternative, and significantly less studied approach, due to Bauer, which makes use of the `pseudospin' extension of the state space, effectively adding a backwards-time degree of freedom. This two-time approach allows definition of a `time operator' and moreover bears interesting relations with other time-symmetric formulations of quantum mechanics. We review and compare these approaches to quantum time, emphasizing that there is a subtle choice between the timeless framework and the two-time approach. Finally, we sketch a framework in which the timeless philosophy can be combined with two-time quantum mechanics.

quant-ph

Optimal Quantum Likelihood Estimation

A hybrid quantum-classical algorithm is a computational scheme in which quantum circuits are used to extract information that is then processed by a classical routine to guide subsequent quantum operations. These algorithms are especially valuable in the noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) era, where quantum resources are constrained and classical optimization plays a central role. Here, we improve the performance of a hybrid algorithm through principled, information-theoretic optimization. We focus on Quantum Likelihood Estimation (QLE) - a hybrid algorithm designed to identify the Hamiltonian governing a quantum system by iteratively updating a weight distribution based on measurement outcomes and Bayesian inference. While QLE already achieves convergence using quantum measurements and Bayesian inference, its efficiency can vary greatly depending on the choice of parameters at each step. We propose an optimization strategy that dynamically selects the initial state, measurement basis, and evolution time in each iteration to maximize the mutual information between the measurement outcome and the true Hamiltonian. This approach builds upon the information-theoretic framework recently developed in [A. Te'eni et al. Oracle problems as communication tasks and optimization of quantum algorithms, arXiv:2409.15549], and leverages mutual information as a guiding cost function for parameter selection. Our implementation employs a simulated annealing routine to minimize the conditional von Neumann entropy, thereby maximizing information gain in each iteration. The results demonstrate that our optimized version significantly reduces the number of iterations required for convergence, thus proposing a practical method for accelerating Hamiltonian learning in quantum systems. Finally, we propose a general scheme that extends our approach to solve a broader family of quantum learning problems.

quant-ph

Equivalence of mutually unbiased bases via orbits: general theory and a $d=4$ case study

In quantum mechanics, mutually unbiased bases (MUBs) represent orthonormal bases that are as "far apart" as possible, and their classification reveals rich underlying geometric structure. Given a complex inner product space, we construct the space of its orthonormal bases as a discrete quotient of the complete flag manifold. We introduce a metric on this space, which corresponds to the "MUBness" distance. This allows us to describe equivalence between sets of mutually unbiased bases in terms of the geometry of this space. The subspace of bases that are unbiased with respect to the standard basis decomposes into orbits under a certain group action, and this decomposition corresponds to the classification of complex Hadamard matrices. More generally, we consider a list of $k$ MUBs, that one wishes to extend. The candidates are points in the subspace comprising all bases which are unbiased with respect to the entire list. This space also decomposes into orbits under a group action, and we prove that points in distinct orbits yield inequivalent MUB lists. Thus, we generalize the relation between complex Hadamard matrices and MUBs. As an application, we identify new symmetries that reduce the parameter space of MUB triples in dimension $4$ by a factor of $4$.

math-ph