Self-consistent quantum tomography with regularization

Abstract

A reliable method for characterizing quantum operations that is suitable for improving and validating their accuracies is indispensable for realizing a practical quantum computer. Known methods are still not sufficient because they lack reliability or are not suitable for use in the improvement and validation steps. Here we propose a reliable characterization method that is suitable for the accuracy validation step. First, we introduce a new self-consistent estimator with regularization and physicality constraints that are designed for improvement and validation. Second, we mathematically prove that the method provides estimation results that are stringently physical and converge to the gauge-equivalence class of the quantum operations of interest at the limit of data size going to infinity. The asymptotic convergence guarantees the reliability of the method, and the physical and regularized results ensure the suitability to the validation task. We also derive the asymptotic convergence rate, which would be optimal. Finally, we show numerical results on 1-qubit system, which confirm the theoretical results and prove that the method proposed is practical.