Quantum benchmarking with realistic states of light

TL;DR

This paper develops a method for quantum benchmarking that can be applied to arbitrary states of light, validated with real data from a continuous-variable quantum memory, broadening the applicability of quantum device certification.

Contribution

It introduces a framework for quantum benchmarking with arbitrary light states, overcoming limitations of previous methods restricted to idealized states.

Findings

Validated with real experimental data from a quantum memory

Demonstrated applicability to non-ideal, realistic states

Broadens quantum benchmarking to more practical scenarios

Abstract

The goal of quantum benchmarking is to certify that imperfect quantum communication devices (e.g., quantum channels, quantum memories, quantum key distribution systems) can still be used for meaningful quantum communication. However, the test states used in quantum benchmarking experiments may be imperfect as well. Many quantum benchmarks are only valid for states which match some ideal form, such as pure states or Gaussian states. We outline how to perform quantum benchmarking using arbitrary states of light. We demonstrate these results using real data taken from a continuous-variable quantum memory.