Quantum information processing based on Rydberg atoms emerged as a promising direction two decades ago. Recent experimental and theoretical progresses have shined exciting light on this avenue. In this concise review, we will briefly introduce the basics of Rydberg atoms and their recent applications in associated areas of neutral atom quantum computation and simulation. We shall also include related discussions on quantum optics with Rydberg atomic ensembles, which are increasingly used to explore quantum computation and quantum simulation with photons.

Vibrational degrees of freedom in trapped-ion systems have recently been gaining attention as a quantum resource, beyond the role as a mediator for entangling quantum operations on internal degrees of freedom, because of the large available Hilbert space. The vibrational modes can be represented as quantum harmonic oscillators and thus offer a Hilbert space with infinite dimensions. Here we review recent theoretical and experimental progress in the coherent manipulation of the vibrational modes, including bosonic encoding schemes in quantum information, reliable and efficient measurement techniques, and quantum operations that allow various quantum simulations and quantum computation algorithms. We describe experiments using the vibrational modes, including the preparation of non-classical states, molecular vibronic sampling, and applications in quantum thermodynamics. We finally discuss the potential prospects and challenges of trapped-ion vibrational-mode quantum information processing.

This review summarizes the requirement of low temperature conditions in existing experimental approaches to quantum computation and quantum simulation.

Superconducting circuits based on Josephson junctions are regarded as one of the most promising technologies for the implementation of scalable quantum computers. This review presents the basic principles of superconducting qubits and shows the progress of quantum computing and quantum simulation based on superconducting qubits in recent years. The experimental realization of gate operations, readout, error correction codes, as well as some quantum algorithms are summarized, followed by an introduction of quantum simulation. And then some important applications in fields including condensed matter physics, quantum annealing, and quantum chemistry are discussed.

We present a quantum adiabatic algorithm for a set of quantum 2-satisfiability (Q2SAT) problem, which is a generalization of 2-satisfiability (2SAT) problem. For a Q2SAT problem, we construct the Hamiltonian which is similar to that of a Heisenberg chain. All the solutions of the given Q2SAT problem span the subspace of the degenerate ground states. The Hamiltonian is adiabatically evolved so that the system stays in the degenerate subspace. Our numerical results suggest that the time complexity of our algorithm is O(n^3.9) for yielding non-trivial solutions for problems with the number of clauses m=dn(n-1)/2 (\(d\lesssim 0.1\)). We discuss the advantages of our algorithm over the known quantum and classical algorithms.

Josephson parametric amplifiers (JPAs) with nearly quantum-limited noise performance have become indispensable devices for the measurements of superconducting quantum information. We have developed an all-Nb lumped-element flux-driven JPA operating in the three-wave mixing mode. Our Nb-based JPA comprises Nb/Al-AlO_x/Nb Josephson junctions, a parallel-plate capacitor with SiO₂ dielectric sandwiched between two Nb layers, a bottom coplanar waveguides layer, and a top Nb wiring layer. We experimentally demonstrate a 20 dB gain over a 190 MHz bandwidth, a mean 1 dB compression of -123 dBm, and near quantum-limited noise performance. This fabrication process can be further used to design impedance transformed parametric amplifiers for multiple-qubit readout.

An impedance matched parametric amplifier (IMPA) with Josephson junctions is fabricated and characterized. A hybrid structure containing coplanar and strip structures is implemented to realize an impedance taper line and a plate capacitor in an LC nonlinear resonator based on Josephson junctions. The upper plate of the capacitor is isolated with SiN_x without grounding as well as the strips. Such easily-prepared designs greatly reduce the requirements for lithography alignment and precision, which makes the fabrication process more reliable. The experimental results show that in such IMPA a gain higher than 25 dB with a bandwidth of about 100 MHz can be obtained. This broadband amplifier operates close to the quantum limit. By adjusting the working point, a higher bandwidth of about 400 MHz can be obtained with a gain of about 17 dB.

High fidelity two-qubit gates are fundamental for scaling up the superconducting qubit number. We use two qubits coupled via a frequency-tunable coupler which can adjust the coupling strength, and demonstrate the CZ gate using two different schemes, adiabatic and diabatic methods. The Clifford based randomized benchmarking (RB) method is used to assess and optimize the CZ gate fidelity. The fidelities of adiabatic and diabatic CZ gates are 99.53(8)% and 98.72(2)%, respectively. We also analyze the errors induced by the decoherence. Comparing to 30 ns duration time of adiabatic CZ gate, the duration time of diabatic CZ gate is 19 ns, revealing lower incoherence error rate $r'_{incoherent, int} = 0.0197(5)$ compared to $r_{incoherent, int} = 0.0223(3)$.

Superconducting circuit quantum electrodynamics (QED) architecture composed of superconducting qubit and resonator is a powerful platform for exploring quantum physics and quantum information processing. By employing techniques developed for superconducting quantum computing, we experimentally investigate phase-sensitive Landau-Zener-Stückelberg (LZS) interference phenomena in a circuit QED. Our experiments cover an extensive range of LZS transition parameters and demonstrate the LZS induced Rabi-like oscillation as well as phase-dependent steady-state population.

We investigate the nonlocal advantage of quantum coherence (NAQC) and entanglement for two spins coupled via the Heisenberg interaction and under the intrinsic decoherence. Solutions of this decoherence model for the initial spin-1/2 and spin-1 maximally entangled states are obtained, based on which we calculate the NAQC and entanglement. In the weak region of magnetic field, the NAQC behaves as a damped oscillation with the time evolves, while the entanglement decays exponentially (behaves as a damped oscillation) for the spin-1/2 (spin-1) case. Moreover, the decay of both the NAQC and entanglement can be suppressed significantly by tuning the magnetic field and anisotropy of the spin interaction to some decoherence-rate-determined optimal values.

Nuclear physics, whose underling theory is described by quantum gauge field coupled with matter, is fundamentally important and yet is formidably challenge for simulation with classical computers. Quantum computing provides a perhaps transformative approach for studying and understanding nuclear physics. With rapid scaling-up of quantum processors as well as advances on quantum algorithms, the digital quantum simulation approach for simulating quantum gauge fields and nuclear physics has gained lots of attention. In this review, we aim to summarize recent efforts on solving nuclear physics with quantum computers. We first discuss a formulation of nuclear physics in the language of quantum computing. In particular, we review how quantum gauge fields (both Abelian and non-Abelian) and their coupling to matter field can be mapped and studied on a quantum computer. We then introduce related quantum algorithms for solving static properties and real-time evolution for quantum systems, and show their applications for a broad range of problems in nuclear physics, including simulation of lattice gauge field, solving nucleon and nuclear structures, quantum advantage for simulating scattering in quantum field theory, non-equilibrium dynamics, and so on. Finally, a short outlook on future work is given.

In superconducting circuit, microwave resonators and capacitors are crucial components, and their quality has a strong impact on circuit performance. Here we develop a novel wet etching process to define these two components using common photoresist developer as etchant. This method reduces subsequent steps and can be completed immediately after development. By measuring the internal quality factor of resonators, we show that it is possible to achieve similar or better performance when compared with samples made by standard etching processes. This easy-to-implement method may boost the yield hence providing an alternative fabrication process for microwave resonators and capacitors.

Homomorphic encryption has giant advantages in the protection of privacy information. In this paper, we present a new kind of probabilistic quantum homomorphic encryption scheme for the universal quantum circuit evaluation. Firstly, the pre-shared non-maximally entangled states are utilized as auxiliary resources, which lower the requirements of the quantum channel, to correct the errors in non-Clifford gate evaluation. By using the set synthesized by Clifford gates and T gates, it is feasible to perform the arbitrary quantum computation on the encrypted data. Secondly, our scheme is different from the previous scheme described by the quantum homomorphic encryption algorithm. From the perspective of application, a two-party probabilistic quantum homomorphic encryption scheme is proposed. It is clear what the computation and operation that the client and the server need to perform respectively, as well as the permission to access the data. Finally, the security of probabilistic quantum homomorphic encryption scheme is analyzed in detail. It demonstrates that the scheme has favorable security in three aspects, including privacy data, evaluated data and encryption and decryption keys.

Quantum computers are in hot-spot with the potential to handle more complex problems than classical computers can. Realizing the quantum computation requires the universal quantum gate set {T, H, CNOT} so as to perform any unitary transformation with arbitrary accuracy. Here we first briefly review the Majorana fermions and then propose the realization of arbitrary two-qubit quantum gates based on chiral Majorana fermions. Elementary cells consist of a quantum anomalous Hall insulator surrounded by a topological superconductor with electric gates and quantum-dot structures, which enable the braiding operation and the partial exchange operation. After defining a qubit by four chiral Majorana fermions, the single-qubit T and H quantum gates are realized via one partial exchange operation and three braiding operations, respectively. The entangled CNOT quantum gate is performed by braiding six chiral Majorana fermions. Besides, we design a powerful device with which arbitrary two-qubit quantum gates can be realized and take the quantum Fourier transform as an example to show that several quantum operations can be performed with this space-limited device. Thus, our proposal could inspire further utilization of mobile chiral Majorana edge states for faster quantum computation.

We study a two-dimensional quantum walk with only one walker alternatively walking along the horizontal and vertical directions driven by a single two-side coin. We find the analytical expressions of the first two moments of the walker’s position distribution in the long-time limit, which indicates that the variance of the position distribution grows quadratically with walking steps, showing a ballistic spreading typically for quantum walks. Besides, we analyze the correlation by calculating the quantum mutual information and the measurement-induced disturbance respectively as the outcome of the walk in one dimension is correlated to the other with the coin as a bridge. It is shown that the quantum correlation between walker spaces increases gradually with the walking steps.

Quantum simulation has been developed extensively over the past decades, widely applied to different models to explore dynamics in the quantum regime. Rydberg atoms have strong dipole-dipole interactions and interact with each other over a long distance, which makes it straightforward to build many-body interacting quantum systems to simulate specific models. Additionally, neutral atoms are easily manipulated due to their weak interactions. These advantages make Rydberg many-body system an ideal platform to implement quantum simulations. This paper reviews several quantum simulations for different models based on Rydberg many-body systems, including quantum Ising models in one dimension and two dimensions mainly for quantum magnetism, XY model for excitation transport, SSH model for symmetry-protected topological phases, and critical self-organized behaviors in many-body systems. Besides, some challenges and promising directions of quantum simulations based on Rydberg many-body system are discussed in this paper.

We demonstrate an active reset protocol in a superconducting quantum circuit. The thermal population on the excited state of a transmon qubit is reduced through driving the transitions between the qubit and an ancillary qubit. Furthermore, we investigate the efficiency of this approach at different temperatures. The result shows that population in the first excited state can be dropped from 7% to 2.55% in 27 ns at 30 mK. The efficiency improves as the temperature increases. Compared to other schemes, our proposal alleviates the requirements for measurement procedure and equipment. With the increase of qubit integration, the fast reset technique holds the promise of improving the fidelity of quantum control.

Stimulated Raman adiabatic passage (STIRAP) is an important technique to manipulate quantum states in quantum simulation and quantum computation. The transformation fidelity is limited in reality due to experimental imperfections. After systematically calculating the influence of dissipation caused by thermal fluctuations and instantaneous decay of the intermediate state, we find optimized control pulses of Rydberg atom in optical tweezer to increase the STIRAP fidelity via optimal control method. All constraints of currently available control lasers have been taken into account. The transition error can be further depressed when control lasers with shorter rise time and accordingly proper total evolution time are applied. Finally, the robustness of the control pulses with respect to random deviations between the theoretical pulse shape and the implemented ones is also enhanced by additional rounds of optimizations based on ensemble averaged fidelity.

Measurement-based quantum computation with continuous variables, which realizes computation by performing measurement and feedforward of measurement results on a large scale Gaussian cluster state, provides a feasible way to implement quantum computation. Quantum error correction is an essential procedure to protect quantum information in quantum computation and quantum communication. In this review, we briefly introduce the progress of measurement-based quantum computation and quantum error correction with continuous variables based on Gaussian cluster states. We also discuss the challenges in the fault-tolerant measurement-based quantum computation with continuous variables.

The fine-grained uncertainty relation (FUR) is investigated for accelerating open quantum system, which manifests the celebrated Unruh effect, a crucial piece of the jigsaw for combining relativity and quantum physics. For a single detector, we show that the inevitable Unruh decoherence can induce a smaller FUR uncertainty bound, which indicates an additional measurement uncertainty may exist. For an open system combined with two detectors, via a nonlocal retrieval game, the related FUR uncertainty bound is determined by the non-classical correlation of the system. By estimating the maximal violation of Bell inequality for an accelerating system, we show that the FUR uncertainty bound can be protected from Unruh decoherence, due to quantum correlation generated through Markovian dynamics.