ManQala: Game-inspired strategies for quantum state engineering

AVS Quantum Science, vol. 5

Abstract

The ability to prepare systems in specific target states through quantum engineering is essential for realizing the new technologies promised by a second quantum revolution. Here, we recast the fundamental problem of state preparation in high-dimensional Hilbert spaces as ManQala, a quantum game inspired by the West African sowing game mancala. Motivated by optimal gameplay in solitaire mancala, where nested nearest-neighbor permutations and actions evolve the state of the game board to its target configuration, ManQala acts as a pre-processing approach for deterministically arranging particles in a quantum control problem. Once pre-processing with ManQala is complete, existing quantum control methods are applied, but now with a reduced search space. We find that ManQala-type strategies match, or outperform, competing approaches in terms of final state variance even in small-scale quantum state engineering problems where we expect the slightest advantage, since the relative reduction in search space is the least. These results suggest that ManQala provides a rich platform for designing control protocols relevant to quantum technologies.

Authors 8

1. Onur Danaci Aachen Instituut-Lorentz

   Leiden University · IBM (United States) · Howard University

   Affiliation as printed

   IBM-HBCU Quantum Center, Howard University 1 , Washington, District of Columbia 20059, USA

   Instituut-Lorentz, Universiteit Leiden 2 , 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands

2. Wenlei Zhang

   Tulane University

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Physics & Engineering Physics, Tulane University 3 , New Orleans, Louisiana 70118, USA

3. William Djakam

   University of Alabama at Birmingham

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Alabama-Birmingham 4 , Birmingham, Alabama 35233, USA

4. Michaela Amoo

   IBM (United States) · Howard University

   Affiliation as printed

   IBM-HBCU Quantum Center, Howard University 1 , Washington, District of Columbia 20059, USA

5. Ryan T. Glasser

   Tulane University

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Physics & Engineering Physics, Tulane University 3 , New Orleans, Louisiana 70118, USA

6. Brian T. Kirby

   Tulane University · DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory

   Affiliation as printed

   DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory 5 , Adelphi, Maryland 20783, USA

   Department of Physics & Engineering Physics, Tulane University 3 , New Orleans, Louisiana 70118, USA

7. Moussa N’Gom

   Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Physics, Applied Physics, and Astronomy, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 6 , Troy, New York 12180, USA

8. Thomas A. Searles

   University of Illinois Chicago

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Illinois Chicago 7 , Chicago, Illinois 60607, USA