Laura Mancinska

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About LOCC (But Were Afraid to Ask)

In this paper we study the subset of generalized quantum measurements on finite dimensional systems known as local operations and classical communication (LOCC). While LOCC emerges as the natural class of operations in many important quantum information tasks, its mathematical structure is complex and difficult to characterize. Here we provide a precise description of LOCC and related operational classes in terms of quantum instruments. Our formalism captures both finite round protocols as well as those that utilize an unbounded number of communication rounds. While the set of LOCC is not topologically closed, we show that finite round LOCC constitutes a compact subset of quantum operations. Additionally we show the existence of an open ball around the completely depolarizing map that consists entirely of LOCC implementable maps. Finally, we demonstrate a two-qubit map whose action can be approached arbitrarily close using LOCC, but nevertheless cannot be implemented perfectly.

Entanglement can Increase Asymptotic Rates of Zero-Error Classical Communication over Classical Channels

It is known that the number of different classical messages which can be communicated with a single use of a classical channel with zero probability of decoding error can sometimes be increased by using entanglement shared between sender and receiver. It has been an open question to determine whether entanglement can ever increase the zero-error communication rates achievable in the limit of many channel uses. In this paper we show, by explicit examples, that entanglement can indeed increase asymptotic zero-error capacity, even to the extent that it is equal to the normal capacity of the channel.

Graph Homomorphisms for Quantum Players

A homomorphism from a graph X to a graph Y is an adjacency preserving mapping f:V(X) -> V(Y). We consider a nonlocal game in which Alice and Bob are trying to convince a verifier with certainty that a graph X admits a homomorphism to Y. This is a generalization of the well-studied graph coloring game. Via systematic study of quantum homomorphisms we prove new results for graph coloring. Most importantly, we show that the Lovasz theta number of the complement lower bounds the quantum chromatic number, which itself is not known to be computable. We also show that other quantum graph parameters, such as quantum independence number, can differ from their classical counterparts. Finally, we show that quantum homomorphisms closely relate to zero-error channel capacity. In particular, we use quantum homomorphisms to construct graphs for which entanglement-assistance increases their one-shot zero-error capacity.

New Separations in Zero-Error Channel Capacity Through Projective Kochen–Specker Sets and Quantum Coloring

We introduce two generalizations of Kochen-Specker (KS) sets: projective KS sets and generalized KS sets. We then use projective KS sets to characterize all graphs for which the chromatic number is strictly larger than the quantum chromatic number. Here, the quantum chromatic number is defined via a nonlocal game based on graph coloring. We further show that from any graph with separation between these two quantities, one can construct a classical channel for which entanglement assistance increases the one-shot zero-error capacity. As an example, we exhibit a new family of classical channels with an exponential increase.We introduce two generalizations of Kochen-Specker (KS) sets: projective KS sets and generalized KS sets. We then use projective KS sets to characterize all graphs for which the chromatic number is strictly larger than the quantum chromatic number. Here, the quantum chromatic number is defined via a nonlocal game based on graph coloring. We further show that from any graph with separation between these two quantities, one can construct a classical channel for which entanglement assistance increases the one-shot zero-error capacity. As an example, we exhibit a new family of classical channels with an exponential increase.

Bounds on Entanglement Assisted Source-channel Coding Via the Lovász Theta Number and Its Variants

We study zero-error entanglement assisted source-channel coding (communication in the presence of side information). Adapting a technique of Beigi, we show that such coding requires existence of a set of vectors satisfying orthogonality conditions related to suitably defined graphs G and H. Such vectors exist if and only if theta(G) <= theta(H) where theta represents the Lovasz number. We also obtain similar inequalities for the related Schrijver theta^- and Szegedy theta^+ numbers. These inequalities reproduce several known bounds and also lead to new results. We provide a lower bound on the entanglement assisted cost rate. We show that the entanglement assisted independence number is bounded by the Schrijver number: alpha^*(G) <= theta^-(G). Therefore, we are able to disprove the conjecture that the one-shot entanglement-assisted zero-error capacity is equal to the integer part of the Lovasz number. Beigi introduced a quantity beta as an upper bound on alpha^* and posed the question of whether beta(G) = \lfloor theta(G) \rfloor. We answer this in the affirmative and show that a related quantity is equal to \lceil theta(G) \rceil. We show that a quantity chi_{vect}(G) recently introduced in the context of Tsirelsons conjecture is equal to \lceil theta^+(G) \rceil.

Quantum homomorphisms

A homomorphism from a graph X to a graph Y is an adjacency preserving map f : V ( X ) ? V ( Y ) . We consider a nonlocal game in which Alice and Bob are trying to convince a verifier with certainty that a graph X admits a homomorphism to Y. This is a generalization of the well-studied graph coloring game. Via systematic study of quantum homomorphisms we prove new results for graph coloring. Most importantly, we show that the Lovasz theta number of the complement is a lower bound on the quantum chromatic number, the latter of which is not known to be computable. We also show that some of our newly introduced graph parameters, namely quantum independence and clique numbers, can differ from their classical counterparts while others, namely quantum odd girth, cannot. Finally, we show that quantum homomorphisms closely relate to zero-error channel capacity. In particular, we use quantum homomorphisms to construct graphs for which entanglement-assistance increases their one-shot zero-error capacity.A homomorphism from a graph X to a graph Y is an adjacency preserving mapping f : V (X) → V (Y ). We consider a nonlocal game in which Alice and Bob are trying to convince a verifier with certainty that a graph X admits a homomorphism to Y . This is a generalization of the well-studied graph coloring game. Via systematic study of quantum homomorphisms we prove new results for graph coloring. Most importantly, we show that the Lovász theta number of the complement lower bounds the quantum chromatic number, which itself is not known to be computable. We also show that other quantum graph parameters, such as quantum independence number, can differ from their classical counterparts. Finally, we show that quantum homomorphisms closely relate to zero-error channel capacity. In particular, we use quantum homomorphisms to construct graphs for which entanglement-assistance increases their one-shot zero-error capacity.

Interpolatability distinguishes LOCC from separable von Neumann measurements

Local operations with classical communication (LOCC) and separable operations are two classes of quantum operations that play key roles in the study of quantum entanglement. Separable operations are strictly more powerful than LOCC, but no simple explanation of this phenomenon is known. We show that, in the case of von Neumann measurements, the ability to interpolate measurements is an operational principle that sets apart LOCC and separable operations.

When the asymptotic limit offers no advantage in the local-operations-and-classical-communication paradigm

We consider bipartite LOCC, the class of operations implementable by local quantum operations and classical communication between two parties. Surprisingly, there are operations that cannot be implemented with finitely many messages but can be approximated to arbitrary precision with more and more messages. This significantly complicates the analysis of what can or cannot be approximated with LOCC. Towards alleviating this problem, we exhibit two scenarios in which allowing vanishing error does not help. The first scenario involves implementation of measurements with projective product measurement operators. The second scenario is the discrimination of unextendible product bases on two 3-dimensional systems.