Quantum simulation: From basic principles to applications

Laurent Sanchez-Palencia (1)

1 CPHT - Centre de Physique Théorique [Palaiseau]

Envisioned by Richard Feynman in the early 1980's, the field of quantum simulation has received dramatic impetus thanks to the development of a variety of platforms able to emulate a wide class of quantum Hamiltonians. During the past decade, most of the quantum simulators have implemented rather well known models, hence permitting a direct comparison to theoretical calculations and a precise benchmarking. Now, the field has reached a maturity such that it can address NP-hard problems, which cannot be solved exactly using classical algorithms. This contribution is an introduction to quantum simulation. We discuss the challenges, define both digital and analog quantum simulators, and list the demanding conditions they require. We also provide a brief account of the contributions of the special issue on Quantum Simulation in the Comptes-Rendus de Physique of the French Academy of Sciences.

Domaines: Gaz Quantiques [cond-mat.quant-gas]; Physique Quantique [quant-ph]

Laurent Sanchez-Palencia. Quantum simulation: From basic principles to applications. 2018. ⟨hal-01910630v1⟩