Gate-based circuit designs for quantum adder-inspired quantum random walks on superconducting qubits

Abstract

Quantum random walks, which drew much attention over the past few decades for their distinctly nonclassical behavior, are a promising subfield within quantum computing. Theoretical framework and applications for these walks have seen many great mathematical advances, with experimental demonstrations now catching up. In this study, we examine the viability of implementing coin quantum random walks using a Quantum Adder-based Shift Operator, with quantum circuit designs specifically for superconducting qubits. We focus on the strengths and weaknesses of these walks, particularly circuit depth, gate count, connectivity requirements and scalability. We propose and analyze a novel approach to implementing boundary conditions for these walks, demonstrating the technique explicitly in one and two dimensions. Finally, we present several fidelity results from running our circuits on IBM’s quantum volume 32 ‘Toronto’ chip, showcasing the extent to which these noisy intermediate-scale quantum devices can currently handle quantum walks.