arXiv subjects

Friederike Butt

Publications and source records attributed to Friederike Butt.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Complementary 3D color codes for transversal quantum logic

Transversal logical gates provide a direct route to fault-tolerant quantum computation, but the Eastin-Knill theorem forbids a universal transversal gate set within a single quantum error-correcting code. We propose a hybrid architecture based on the tetrahedral three-dimensional color code and its Hadamard-transformed counterpart, which we call the H-tetrahedral code. The two encodings support complementary transversal non-Clifford operations. Combined with bitwise Hadamard transformations that switch between the two encodings and a one-way transversal logical CNOT from the tetrahedral code to the H-tetrahedral code, these operations realize an almost-universal transversal logical gate set that enables both the creation of entanglement and logical states with magic. We complete a universal gate set through a pieceably fault-tolerant round-robin construction of a logical controlled-$Z$ gate between two H-tetrahedral codes. This logical entangling gate is interleaved with reduced-overhead Steane-type syndrome extraction using logical two-dimensional color-code auxiliary qubits. Our construction provides a new route toward implementing classically hard-to-simulate quantum algorithms where magic and most entangling operations are transversal while the resource overhead is concentrated in a small number of non-transversal Clifford entangling operations.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Decoding 3D color codes with boundaries

Practical large-scale quantum computation requires both efficient error correction and robust implementation of logical operations. Three-dimensional (3D) color codes are a promising candidate for fault-tolerant quantum computation due to their transversal non-Clifford gates, but efficient decoding remains challenging. In this work, we extend previous decoders for two-dimensional color codes [1], which are based on the restriction of the decoding problem to a subset of the qubit lattice, to three dimensions. Including boundaries of 3D color codes, we demonstrate that the 3D restriction decoder achieves optimal scaling of the logical error rate and a threshold value of 1.55(6)% for code-capacity bit- and phase-flip noise, which is almost a factor of two higher than previously reported for this family of codes [2, 3]. We furthermore present qCodePlot3D, a Python package for visualizing 2D and 3D color codes, error configurations, and decoding paths, which supports the development and analysis of such decoders. These advancements contribute to making 3D color codes a more practical option for exploring fault-tolerant quantum computation.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Demonstration of measurement-free universal fault-tolerant quantum computation

The ability to perform quantum error correction (QEC) and robust gate operations on encoded qubits opens the door to demonstrations of quantum algorithms. Contemporary QEC schemes typically require mid-circuit measurements with feed-forward control, which are challenging for qubit control, often slow, and susceptible to relatively high error rates. In this work, we propose and experimentally demonstrate a universal toolbox of fault-tolerant logical operations without mid-circuit measurements on a trapped-ion quantum processor. We present modular logical state teleportation between two four-qubit error-detecting codes without measurements during algorithm execution. Moreover, we realize a fault-tolerant universal gate set on an eight-qubit error-detecting code hosting three logical qubits, based on state injection, which can be executed by coherent gate operations only. We apply this toolbox to experimentally realize Grover's quantum search algorithm fault-tolerantly on three logical qubits encoded in eight physical qubits, with the implementation displaying clear identification of the desired solution states. Our work demonstrates the practical feasibility and provides first steps into the largely unexplored direction of measurement-free quantum computation.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Measurement-free quantum error correction optimized for biased noise

In this paper, we derive optimized measurement-free protocols for quantum error correction and the implementation of a universal gate set optimized for an error model that is noise biased . The noise bias is adapted for neutral atom platforms, where two- and multi-qubit gates are realized with Rydberg interactions and are thus expected to be the dominating source of noise. Careful design of the gates allows to further reduce the noise model to Pauli-Z errors. In addition, the presented circuits are robust to arbitrary single-qubit gate errors, and we demonstrate that the break-even point can be significantly improved compared to fully fault-tolerant measurement-free schemes. The obtained logical qubits with their suppressed error rates on logical gate operations can then be used as building blocks in a first step of error correction in order to push the effective error rates below the threshold of a fully fault-tolerant and scalable quantum error correction scheme.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Demonstration of High-Fidelity Entangled Logical Qubits using Transmons

Quantum error correction (QEC) codes are necessary to fault-tolerantly operate quantum computers. However, every such code is inherently limited by its inability to detect logical errors. Here, we propose and implement a method that leverages dynamical decoupling (DD) to drastically suppress logical errors. The key to achieving this is to use the logical operators of the QEC code as DD pulses, which we refer to as logical dynamical decoupling (LDD). The resulting hybrid QEC-LDD strategy is in principle capable of handling arbitrary weight errors. We test QEC-LDD using IBM transmon devices and the [[4,2,2]] code, demonstrating performance that significantly exceeds the capabilities of using either this code or DD in isolation. We present a method that allows for the detection of logical errors affecting logically encoded Bell states, which, in this case, arise primarily from crosstalk among physical qubits. Building on this, we experimentally demonstrate high-fidelity entangled logical qubits.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Measurement-free, scalable and fault-tolerant universal quantum computing

Reliable execution of large-scale quantum algorithms requires robust underlying operations and this challenge is addressed by quantum error correction (QEC). Most modern QEC protocols rely on measurements and feed-forward operations, which are experimentally demanding, and often slow and prone to high error rates. Additionally, no single error-correcting code intrinsically supports the full set of logical operations required for universal quantum computing, resulting in an increased operational overhead. In this work, we present a complete toolbox for fault-tolerant universal quantum computing without the need for measurements during algorithm execution by combining the strategies of code switching and concatenation. To this end, we develop new fault-tolerant, measurement-free protocols to transfer encoded information between 2D and 3D color codes, which offer complementary and in combination universal sets of robust logical gates. We identify experimentally realistic regimes where these protocols surpass state-of-the-art measurement-based approaches. Moreover, we extend the scheme to higher-distance codes by concatenating the 2D color code with itself and by integrating code switching for operations that lack a natively fault-tolerant implementation. Our measurement-free approach thereby provides a practical and scalable pathway for universal quantum computing on state-of-the-art quantum processors.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Demonstration of two-dimensional connectivity for a scalable error-corrected ion-trap quantum processor architecture

A major hurdle for building a large-scale quantum computer is increasing the number of qubits while maintaining connectivity between them. In trapped-ion devices, this connectivity can be achieved by moving subregisters consisting of a few ions across the processor. Here, we focus on an architecture, which we refer to as the Quantum Spring Array (QSA), that is based on a rectangular two-dimensional lattice of linear strings of ions. Connectivity between adjacent ion strings can be controlled by adjusting their separation. This requires control of trapping potentials along two directions, one along the axis of the ion string and one radial to it. In this work, we investigate key elements of the QSA architecture along both directions: We show that the coupling rate between neighboring lattice sites increases with the number of ions per site and the motion of the coupled system can be resilient to electrical noise, both being key requisites for fast and high-fidelity quantum gate operations. The coherence of the coupling is assessed and an entangling gate between qubits stored in radially separated trapping regions is demonstrated. Moreover, we demonstrate control over radio-frequency signals to adjust the radial separation, and thus the coupling rate, between strings. We further present constructions for the implementation of parallelized, transversal gate operations, and map the QSA architecture to code primitives for fault-tolerant quantum error correction, providing a step towards a quantum processor architecture that is optimized for large-scale operation.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Experimental fault-tolerant code switching

Quantum error correction is a crucial tool for mitigating hardware errors in quantum computers by encoding logical information into multiple physical qubits. However, no single error-correcting code allows for an intrinsically fault-tolerant implementation of all the gates needed for universal quantum computing [1-3]. One way to tackle this problem is to switch between two suitable error-correcting codes, while preserving the encoded logical information, which in combination give access to a fault-tolerant universal gate set [4-6]. In this work, we present the first experimental implementation of fault-tolerant code switching between two codes. One is the seven-qubit color code [7], which features fault-tolerant CNOT and $H$ quantum gates, while the other one, the 10-qubit code [8], allows for a fault-tolerant $T$-gate implementation. Together they form a complementary universal gate set. Building on essential code switching building blocks, we construct logical circuits and prepare 12 different logical states which are not accessible natively in a fault-tolerant way within a single code. Finally, we use code switching to entangle two logical qubits employing the full universal gate set in a single logical quantum circuit. Our results experimentally open up a new route towards deterministic control over logical qubits with low auxiliary qubit overhead, not relying on the probabilistic preparation of resource states.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Demonstration of fault-tolerant Steane quantum error correction

Encoding information redundantly using quantum error-correcting (QEC) codes allows one to overcome the inherent sensitivity to noise in quantum computers to ultimately achieve large-scale quantum computation. The Steane QEC method involves preparing an auxiliary logical qubit of the same QEC code used for the data register. The data and auxiliary registers are then coupled with a logical CNOT gate, enabling a measurement of the auxiliary register to reveal the error syndrome. This study presents the implementation of multiple rounds of fault-tolerant Steane QEC on a trapped-ion quantum computer. Various QEC codes are employed, and the results are compared to a previous experimental approach utilizing flag qubits. Our experimental findings show improved logical fidelities for Steane QEC. This establishes experimental Steane QEC as a competitive paradigm for fault-tolerant quantum computing.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Fault-Tolerant Code Switching Protocols for Near-Term Quantum Processors

Topological color codes are widely acknowledged as promising candidates for fault-tolerant quantum computing. Neither a two-dimensional nor a three-dimensional topology, however, can provide a universal gate set $\{$H, T, CNOT$\}$, with the T-gate missing in the two-dimensional and the H-gate in the three-dimensional case. These complementary shortcomings of the isolated topologies may be overcome in a combined approach, by switching between a two- and a three-dimensional code while maintaining the logical state. In this work, we construct resource-optimized deterministic and non-deterministic code switching protocols for two- and three-dimensional distance-three color codes using fault-tolerant quantum circuits based on flag-qubits. Deterministic protocols allow for the fault-tolerant implementation of logical gates on an encoded quantum state, while non-deterministic protocols may be used for the fault-tolerant preparation of magic states. Taking the error rates of state-of-the-art trapped-ion quantum processors as a reference, we find a logical failure probability of $3\%$ for deterministic logical gates, which cannot be realized transversally in the respective code. By replacing the three-dimensional distance-three color code in the protocol for magic state preparation with the morphed code introduced in [1], we reduce the logical failure rates by two orders of magnitude, thus rendering it a viable method for magic state preparation on near-term quantum processors. Our results demonstrate that code switching enables the fault-tolerant and deterministic implementation of a universal gate set under realistic conditions, and thereby provide a practical avenue to advance universal, fault-tolerant quantum computing and enable quantum algorithms on first, error-corrected logical qubits.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2022

Flopping-mode electron dipole spin resonance in the strong-driving regime

Achieving high fidelity control of spin qubits with conventional electron dipole spin resonance (EDSR) requires large magnetic field gradients of about 1 mT/nm, which also couple the qubit to charge noise, and large drive amplitudes of order 1 mV. The flopping-mode is an alternative method to drive EDSR of an electron in a double quantum dot, where the large displacement between both dots increases the driving efficiency. We propose to operate the flopping-mode in the strong-driving regime to use the full magnetic field difference between the two dots. In simulations, the reduced required magnetic field gradients suppress the infidelity contribution of charge noise by more than two orders of magnitude, while providing Rabi frequencies of up to 60 MHz. However, the near degeneracy of the conduction band in silicon introduces a valley degree of freedom that can degrade the performance of the strong-driving mode. This necessitates a valley-dependent pulse optimization and makes operation to the strong-driving regime questionable.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗