Validation of near-future quantum technologies – VanQuTe

In the last few years we have seen unprecedented advances in quantum information technologies. Already quantum key distribution systems are available commercially. In the near future we will see waves of new quantum devices, offering unparalleled benefits for security, communication, computation and sensing. A key question to the success of this technology is their verification and validation.

Quantum technologies encounter an acute verification and validation problem: On one hand, since classical computations cannot scale-up to the computational power of quantum mechanics, verifying the correctness of a quantum-mediated computation is challenging. On the other hand, the underlying quantum structure resists classical certification analysis. Members of our consortium have shown, as a proof-of-principle, that one can bootstrap a small quantum device to test a larger one. The aim of VanQuTe is to adapt our generic techniques to the specific applications and constraints of photonic systems being developed within our consortium. Our ultimate goal is to develop techniques to unambiguously verify the presence of a quantum advantage in near future quantum technologies.

We will develop experimental test beds and the theoretical framework for verification of diverse quantum technologies including sub-universal quantum computation (boson sampling and instantaneous quantum computation (IQP)), secure quantum communication and quantum sensing and imaging. We will use a three-layered approach to target the development and demonstration of quantum advantage for emerging near future quantum devices. In the core Verification layer we address the key challenge of certifying and verifying quantum information processing beyond the classical regime. This will provide us a crucial interface between our target Applications layer (secure communication, sensing and sub-universal quantum computation) and Implementations layer (photonics hardware).

This ambitious project will call on expertise stretching across two groups in France (LIP6 and LORIA) and three in Singapore (SUTD, NUS, NTU), building on a strong history of collaboration. Indeed our French and Singaporean members together pioneered the verification methods we will be adapting and applying across our proposal. The consortium complements this with the expertise required in communication theory, foundational physics, quantum protocols and optical implementations. This project will inevitably forge stronger relations between Singapore and France in this exciting domain and more broadly as the work is disseminated through public engagement and outreach.

The ability to communicate securely and compute efficiently is ever more important to society. Our approach to development of verifiable quantum hardware within our experimental testbeds will eventually be complemented with development of real-world applications geared towards industrial involvement.