Michael Bremner: Towards a proof of the classical intractability of quantum simulation

Monday, October 7, 2013 2:30 pm - 2:30 pm EDT (GMT -04:00)

Michael Bremner, University of Technology, Syndey

Abstract:

The efficient simulation of quantum systems is considered to be one of the most exciting potential applications of quantum computing technologies. There is an expectation that specialized quantum simulators can be engineered as a stepping stone to the development of fully universal, fault-tolerant, quantum computers. If this expectation is to be realized we must identify physical systems and sets of observables that are both simple enough to robustly implement in a near-term quantum device, yet remain a challenge to classically simulate. In this talk I will discuss several simple quantum systems that cannot be easily simulated classically that might lead to a convincing demonstration of the classical intractability of quantum simulators.