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Quantum Computation: From a Programmer’s Perspective

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Abstract

This paper is the second part of a series of two articles on quantum computation. If the first part was mostly concerned with the mathematical formalism, here we turn to the programmer’s perspective. We analyze the various existing models of quantum computation and the problem of the stability of quantum information. We discuss the needs and challenges for the design of a scalable quantum programming language. We then present two interesting approaches and examine their strengths and weaknesses. Finally, we take a step back, and review the state of the research on the semantics of quantum computation, and how this can help in achieving some of the goals.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Computer and Information Science, University of Pennsylvania, 3330 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104-6389, USA

    Benoît Valiron

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  1. Benoît Valiron
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Correspondence to Benoît Valiron.

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Supported by the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) via Department of Interior National Business Center contract number D11PC20168. The U.S. Government is authorized to reproduce and distribute reprints for Governmental purposes notwithstanding any copyright annotation thereon. Disclaimer: The views and conclusions contained herein are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as necessarily representing the official policies or endorsements, either expressed or implied, of IARPA, DoI/NBC, or the U.S. Government.

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Valiron, B. Quantum Computation: From a Programmer’s Perspective. New Gener. Comput. 31, 1–26 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00354-012-0120-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00354-012-0120-0

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