Southwest Quantum Information and Technology

Reproducing the performance enhancement of adiabatic reverse annealing

Presenting Author: Matthew Kowalsky, University of Southern California
Contributing Author(s): Tameem Albash

We propose a conventional (forward) quantum annealing protocol with a diagonal catalyst of programmable strength λ. By adjusting λ we demonstrate an exponential improvement in the efficiency of quantum annealing for solving the p-spin model, reproducing the performance improvements of adiabatic reverse annealing(1). Our protocol allows us to identify the enhancement mechanism of such approaches: balancing Hamiltonian terms in a way that mitigates discontinuous shifts in the global minimum of the semiclassical potential. This observation allows us to identify and solve other problems amenable to such protocols. 1.Ohkuwa, M., Nishimori, H. & Lidar, D. A. Reverse annealing for the fully connected $p$-spin model. Phys. Rev. A 98, 022314 (2018).

(Session 5 : Saturday from 5:00pm - 7:00pm)