| NSF Org: |
CCF Division of Computing and Communication Foundations |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | August 14, 2020 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | May 20, 2022 |
| Award Number: | 2037613 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Elizabeth Behrman
ebehrman@nsf.gov (703)292-7049 CCF Division of Computing and Communication Foundations CSE Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering |
| Start Date: | October 1, 2020 |
| End Date: | September 30, 2023 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $199,999.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $199,999.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
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| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
1 UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO ALBUQUERQUE NM US 87131-0001 (505)277-4186 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
1700 Lomas Blvd. NE, Suite 2200 Albuquerque NM US 87131-0001 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): |
FET-Fndtns of Emerging Tech, QIS - Quantum Information Scie |
| Primary Program Source: |
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| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.070 |
ABSTRACT
Systems of strongly interacting quantum particles are capable of realizing novel phases of quantum matter, which can exhibit astonishing emergent macroscopic properties like superfluidity, superconductivity, and long-termstorage of quantum information. Despite significant effort in simulating these systems using conventional supercomputers, progress has been limited by a fundamental barrier of computational complexity which veils an unexplored frontier of physics called the entanglement frontier. Quantum computers are naturally able to probe this frontier because they harness entanglement in their elementary operations, and so the eventual development of mature quantum computing technology will greatly advance our understanding of quantum phase transitions and enable the discovery of new phases of quantum matter with potentially transformative properties for technology and society. All of this depends on the development of efficient quantum algorithms for simulating the thermodynamic properties of quantum systems. This project investigates the quantum Metropolis algorithm, which is a quantum algorithm that directly generalizes one of the most successful 20th century paradigms for simulating classical statistical physics. By paralleling developments that occurred in the corresponding classical algorithm, this project seeks to determine general conditions which imply that a quantum computer can efficiently simulate quantum thermal properties.
The main new perspective used in this project is based on a connection between physical thermalization - the process by which a physical quantum system comes into thermal equilibrium with its environment - and the behavior and convergence of the quantum Metropolis algorithm. The eigenstate thermalization hypothesis (ETH) is a prominent explanation for how physical quantum systems approach thermal equilibrium, despite their dynamical behavior being time-reversible in principle. This project connects mathematical inequalities developed in the context of the ETH directly to the transition probabilities that govern the behavior of the quantum Metropolis algorithm. This quantitative characterization of transition probabilities opens the door to establishing the first non-trivial cases of rigorously efficient (polynomial-time) quantum algorithms for simulating thermal states of some class of quantum systems that is strongly suspected to be beyond the range of efficient classical simulation.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
Intellectual merit: This NSF EAGER grant contributed to our understanding of the conditions under which quantum computers will be useful. Specifically, for the task of simulating quantum systems in thermal equilibrium with their environment, we (1) found a regime where classical computers can provably match the performance of quantum computing devices, thus making quantum advantage unlikely, and (2) proved that a specific quantum computing algorithm can efficiently simulate a class of equilibrium systems for which there is no known classical algorithm capable of doing so. These results add to a body of work that helps elucidate the paths and research directions that will ultimately yield genuinely useful advantage using quantum computers.
Broader Impact: The work conducted under this grant contributed broadly to the field of quantum information science, the study of how one can harness the microscopic properties of the quantum world to perform information processing tasks beyond what is possible with devices that are governed by the macroscopic laws of classical physics. Workforce development is critical for this growing field, and a key goal of the National Quantum Initiative Act. This grant supported the PhD dissertation research of one student, and also was part of the larger training efforts of the Center for Quantum Information and Control, supported by NSF’s Focused Research Hub in Theoretical Physics program.
Last Modified: 12/29/2023
Modified by: Ivan H Deutsch
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