Batching Circuits to Reduce Compilation in Quantum Control Hardware

TL;DR

This paper presents a batching method for quantum control commands that reduces communication overhead and improves experimental efficiency on an ion-trap quantum computer, demonstrated with quantum chemistry VQE experiments.

Contribution

The work introduces a batching implementation for custom quantum software that decreases upload times and enhances performance in quantum experiments.

Findings

Reduced communication and upload times in quantum experiments

Improved system performance by mitigating drift effects

Applicable to various experimental quantum platforms

Abstract

At Sandia National Laboratories, QSCOUT (the Quantum Scientific Computing Open User Testbed) is an ion-trap based quantum computer built for the purpose of allowing users low-level access to quantum hardware. Commands are executed on the hardware using Jaqal (Just Another Quantum Assembly Language), a programming language designed in-house to support the unique capabilities of QSCOUT. In this work, we describe a batching implementation of our custom software that speeds the experimental run-time through the reduction of communication and upload times. Reducing the code upload time during experimental runs improves system performance by mitigating the effects of drift. We demonstrate this implementation through a set of quantum chemistry experiments using a variational quantum eigensolver (VQE). While developed specifically for this testbed, this idea finds application across many similar experimental platforms that seek greater hardware control or reduced overhead.