Quantum walks and quantum search on graphene lattices

This thesis details research I have carried out in the field of quantum walks, which are the quantum analogue of classical random walks. Quantum walks have been shown to offer a significant speed-up compared to classical random walks for certain tasks and for this reason there has been considerable...

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Main Author: Foulger, Iain
Format: Thesis (University of Nottingham only)
Language:English
Published: 2014
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/27717/
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author Foulger, Iain
author_facet Foulger, Iain
author_sort Foulger, Iain
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description This thesis details research I have carried out in the field of quantum walks, which are the quantum analogue of classical random walks. Quantum walks have been shown to offer a significant speed-up compared to classical random walks for certain tasks and for this reason there has been considerable interest in their use in algorithmic settings, as well as in experimental demonstrations of such phenomena. One of the most interesting developments in quantum walk research is their application to spatial searches, where one searches for a particular site of some network or lattice structure. There has been much work done on the creation of discrete- and continuous-time quantum walk search algorithms on various lattice types. However, it has remained an issue that continuous-time searches on two-dimensional lattices have required the inclusion of additional memory in order to be effective, memory which takes the form of extra internal degrees of freedom for the walker. In this work, we describe how the need for extra degrees of freedom can be negated by utilising a graphene lattice, demonstrating that a continuous-time quantum search in the experimentally relevant regime of two-dimensions is possible. This is achieved through alternative methods of marking a particular site to previous searches, creating a quantum search protocol at the Dirac point in graphene. We demonstrate that this search mechanism can also be adapted to allow state transfer across the lattice. These two processes offer new methods for channelling information across lattices between specific sites and supports the possibility of graphene devices which operate at a single-atom level. Recent experiments on microwave analogues of graphene that adapt these ideas, which we will detail, demonstrate the feasibility of realising the quantum search and transfer mechanisms on graphene.
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spelling nottingham-277172025-02-28T11:32:12Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/27717/ Quantum walks and quantum search on graphene lattices Foulger, Iain This thesis details research I have carried out in the field of quantum walks, which are the quantum analogue of classical random walks. Quantum walks have been shown to offer a significant speed-up compared to classical random walks for certain tasks and for this reason there has been considerable interest in their use in algorithmic settings, as well as in experimental demonstrations of such phenomena. One of the most interesting developments in quantum walk research is their application to spatial searches, where one searches for a particular site of some network or lattice structure. There has been much work done on the creation of discrete- and continuous-time quantum walk search algorithms on various lattice types. However, it has remained an issue that continuous-time searches on two-dimensional lattices have required the inclusion of additional memory in order to be effective, memory which takes the form of extra internal degrees of freedom for the walker. In this work, we describe how the need for extra degrees of freedom can be negated by utilising a graphene lattice, demonstrating that a continuous-time quantum search in the experimentally relevant regime of two-dimensions is possible. This is achieved through alternative methods of marking a particular site to previous searches, creating a quantum search protocol at the Dirac point in graphene. We demonstrate that this search mechanism can also be adapted to allow state transfer across the lattice. These two processes offer new methods for channelling information across lattices between specific sites and supports the possibility of graphene devices which operate at a single-atom level. Recent experiments on microwave analogues of graphene that adapt these ideas, which we will detail, demonstrate the feasibility of realising the quantum search and transfer mechanisms on graphene. 2014-12-09 Thesis (University of Nottingham only) NonPeerReviewed application/pdf en arr https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/27717/1/IainFoulger_thesis.pdf Foulger, Iain (2014) Quantum walks and quantum search on graphene lattices. PhD thesis, University of Nottingham.
spellingShingle Foulger, Iain
Quantum walks and quantum search on graphene lattices
title Quantum walks and quantum search on graphene lattices
title_full Quantum walks and quantum search on graphene lattices
title_fullStr Quantum walks and quantum search on graphene lattices
title_full_unstemmed Quantum walks and quantum search on graphene lattices
title_short Quantum walks and quantum search on graphene lattices
title_sort quantum walks and quantum search on graphene lattices
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/27717/