Abstract:

Parameterized quantum circuits serve as ansätze for solving variational problems and provide a flexible paradigm for programming near-term quantum computers. Here we discuss three fundamental criteria for this paradigm to be effective: expressibility, trainability and generalisability. We will introduce these concepts and present recent analytic progress quantifying to what extent these criteria can be achieved. While more generally applicable, the discussion will be framed around the example of trying to variationally learn an unknown quantum process. We will end with some more open-ended dreaming about the applications of these ideas for experimental quantum physics.

Bio:

Zoë Holmes did her PhD at Imperial College London and a post doc at Los Alamos National Lab (LANL). She is now an Assistant Professor of Physics in the School of Basic Sciences at the EPFL.