CS201
Computer Science Proseminar, Spring 2023: Quantum Computing
Instructor
Frederic Green, Mathematics/Computer Science, office BP335. E-mail: fgreen at
clarku dot edu.
Office hours: Tuesdays and Thursday 1:30-3:00pm or by appointment.
Text
Quantum Computer Science, by
N. David Mermin (Cambridge University Press, 2007).
Purchase or rent here.
Lectures
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10:25-11:40am, BP326.
Course Goals
One of the most exciting developments in computing history, which has only arisen in the past quarter century, is that computers that make direct use
of the laws of quantum mechanics would be dramatically faster than their classical counterparts.
This course will study the most important elements of this still emerging field of study,
including Shor's quantum algorithm for factoring integers (for which no classical algorithms are known), Grover's quantum search of an unsorted database, which gives a quadratic speedup over any classical algorithm, and other algorithms related to these.
Thus the strangest aspects of quantum theory, e.g. superposition and entanglement, are found to be not only fascinating and puzzling, but also useful! The course
will also explore very basic elements of the burgeoning field of quantum information theory: superdense coding, quantum cryptography, and quantum teleportation.
Course Work and Grading Policies
Your attendance in class is expected; attendance and participation counts 15%.
Tests will consist of a midterm (20%) and a final (30%). The remaining 35% will be determined by graded homework assignments.
Time committement: You should expect to spend an average of 13 hours per week in this course outside of class. This includes about 3 hours reading and 10 hours on homework assignments, which may include help sessions with the professor.
Academic Integrity
This course is conducted in accordance with Clark University's rules
on academic integrity, which you should read
here.
It applies in this course, in particular, to exams and certain
homework assignments. Naturally, no collaboration of any kind is tolerated on
exams. On designated assignments, open collaboration may
be allowed. However, even on these assignments,
in any solutions you obtained in collaboration with another student, even if you wrote them up in your own
words, you must write down, in the assignment, with whom you worked. In other designated assignments,
you will be expected to
work on your own or with a single partner. Any failure to cite
with whom you worked, or obtained help, will be regarded as a breach of academic integrity and will be dealt with severely.
Course Outline
Subject to change. While the outline of the
text will be closely followed, lecture material will frequently look at things from
alternative perspectives, and introduce different ideas and additional topics. It will be important to take notes, and (hard copy) notes will be allowed on exams. The main topics I hope to cover include [brackets indicating chapters in the text]:
- Classical information versus quantum information ("c-bits" versus "qubits") [1]
- Simple quantum algorithms [2]
- Shor's algorithm [3]
- MIDTERM (around week 7)
- Grover's algorithm [4]
- Quantum cryptography, teleportation, quantum information, and all that [6]
- Quantum error correction [5]
- Quantum computational complexity [not in text]
Links
- Intro slides in Keynote, Powerpoint,
and PDF.
- Quick perusal of the textbook reveals it has no exercises. However,
when Mermin taught the course based on lecture notes, he provided 7 substantial assignments which
can be found at this site. Assignments will be drawn in part from those problems, some from other sources, and various things I have or will come up with on my own.
- Assignments
- A couple of relevant blogs:
- Shtetl-Optimized: Scott Aaronson's blog, the go-to place for late breaking information on QC, among other things. And, at the same time, immensely entertaining.
- Gödel's Lost Letter and P = NP, by Richard Lipton and Ken Regan, mostly about the broader field of
Computational Complexity, but with occasional entries on QC.
- For those who want to give LaTeX a try, here is
a pdf about it, and here is the source that yielded it. Henceforth I will make the .tex source files available for all assignments (as they are now for assignments 1 and 2). Recommended software: TexShop on Mac, MiKTeX on Windows, TeXstudio for Linux or, for that matter, any platform (I'm not familiar with it, but it looks good).
- Very extensive list of LateX symbols here.
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Please be aware that all Clark University faculty and teaching assistants are considered responsible employees, which means that if you tell me about a situation involving the aforementioned offenses, I must share that information with the Title IX Coordinator, Brittany Rende (titleix@clarku.edu). Although I have to make that notification, you will, for the most part, control how your case will be handled, including whether or not you wish to pursue a formal complaint. Our goal is to make sure you are aware of the range of options available to you and have access to the resources you need.
If you wish to speak to a confidential resource who does not have this reporting responsibility, you can contact Clark's Center for Counseling and Professional Growth (508-793-7678), Clark's Health Center (508-793-7467), or confidential resource providers on campus: Prof. Stewart (als.confidential@clarku.edu), Prof. Palm Reed (kpr.confidential@clarku.edu), and Prof. Cordova (jvc.confidential@clarku.edu).
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