Characterizing the D-wave processor with Quantum Monte Carlo simulations

NSERC Engage 提案旨在促进 D-wave Systems, Inc. 与滑铁卢大学 Roger Melko 教授团队之间建立新的合作伙伴关系。 D-wave 是“量子退火”(QA) 硬件开发领域的世界领先者，其目标是通过量子机械位或“量子位”提高效率来执行某些类型的计算。在过去的十年中，D-wave 的生产工艺已成功制造了几代量子比特数量不断增加的 QA 芯片。最新一代的量子位数量足够大，需要高度先进的（传统）计算机模拟来进行表征。加拿大计算量子多体物理学研究主席梅尔科教授是此类模拟技术的国际领导者。他的小组专门 采用最先进的量子蒙特卡罗 (QMC) 模拟，能够直接表征 D 波芯片的许多特性。在他们的合作中，他们计划比较 D-wave 芯片在各种条件下的实验硬件输出，以使用 Melko 的 QMC 进行直接模拟。测量将集中于表征芯片输出的热分布，以确定它们是否对应于量子分布或经典分布。此类基准提供了有关 D-Wave 量子退火演化和冻结过程及其最终分布质量的重要信息。这些经验还将培养 Melko 教授的内部 QA 架构模拟能力。这个 此次合作将使质量保证开发的工业模拟合作完全在加拿大境内进行，这将有利于加拿大在量子计算和信息技术方面的更大努力。

This NSERC Engage proposal aims to facilitate a new partnership between D-wave Systems, Inc. and the group of Professor Roger Melko at the University of Waterloo. D-wave is the world leader in the development of hardware for "quantum annealing" (QA), which aims to perform certain types of computations with an efficiency heightened by quantum mechanical bits or "qubits". Over the last decade, D-wave's production process has successfully manufactured several generations of QA chip with increasing numbers of qubits. With their latest generation, qubit numbers are large enough to require highly advanced (conventional) computer simulations for characterization. Professor Melko, the Canada Research Chair in Computational Quantum Many-Body Physics, is an international leader in such simulation technology. His group specializes in state-of-the-art quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) simulations, which are capable of direct characterization of many of the properties of the D-wave chip. In their partnership, they plan to compare the experimental hardware outputs of the D-wave chip under various conditions, to direct simulations using Melko's QMC. Measurements will focus on characterizing the thermal distributions of chip outputs, to determine whether they correspond to quantum or classical distributions. Such benchmarks provide important information about D-Wave quantum annealing evolution and freeze-out processes and the quality of its final distribution. The experience will also develop Prof. Melko's in-house capabilities for simulation of the QA architecture. This partnership will bring the industry-simulation cooperation for QA development entirely within Canada, which will benefit the country's larger effort in quantum computing and information technology.