Fast Escape from Quantum Mazes in Integrated Photonics

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how a quantum walker can efficiently navigate complex mazes by suppressing interference, achieving unprecedented transport efficiency, with theoretical insights and experimental validation in integrated photonics.

Contribution

It introduces a hybrid quantum-classical approach to improve transport efficiency in maze-like structures, inspired by biological energy transport phenomena.

Findings

Unprecedented increase in transport efficiency with maze size.

Successful experimental mapping of maze problem in integrated waveguide arrays.

Validation of theoretical predictions through coherent light experiments.

Abstract

Escaping from a complex maze, by exploring different paths with several decision-making branches in order to reach the exit, has always been a very challenging and fascinating task. Wave field and quantum objects may explore a complex structure in parallel by interference effects, but without necessarily leading to more efficient transport. Here, inspired by recent observations in biological energy transport phenomena, we demonstrate how a quantum walker can efficiently reach the output of a maze by partially suppressing the presence of interference. In particular, we show theoretically an unprecedented improvement in transport efficiency for increasing maze size with respect to purely quantum and classical approaches. In addition, we investigate experimentally these hybrid transport phenomena, by mapping the maze problem in an integrated waveguide array, probed by coherent light, hence successfully testing our theoretical results. These achievements may lead towards future bio-inspired photonics technologies for more efficient transport and computation.