Efficient color code decoders in $d\geq 2$ dimensions from toric code decoders

TL;DR

This paper presents the Restriction Decoder, an efficient method for decoding higher-dimensional color codes by leveraging toric code decoders, with proven correctness and numerical threshold estimates.

Contribution

It introduces the Restriction Decoder that combines toric code decoders with a local lifting procedure for color codes in multiple dimensions, providing a new decoding approach.

Findings

Successful correction if and only if toric code decoding succeeds

Threshold of approximately 10.2% for 2D color code on square-octagon lattice

Comparable threshold to toric code on square lattice

Abstract

We introduce an efficient decoder of the color code in $d\geq 2$ dimensions, the Restriction Decoder, which uses any $d$-dimensional toric code decoder combined with a local lifting procedure to find a recovery operation. We prove that the Restriction Decoder successfully corrects errors in the color code if and only if the corresponding toric code decoding succeeds. We also numerically estimate the Restriction Decoder threshold for the color code in two and three dimensions against the bit-flip and phase-flip noise with perfect syndrome extraction. We report that the 2D color code threshold $p_{\textrm{2D}} \approx 10.2\%$ on the square-octagon lattice is on a par with the toric code threshold on the square lattice.