Quantum Simulation of the Radical Pair Dynamics of the Avian Compass

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates the first quantum simulation of the radical pair mechanism underlying the avian compass using a unitary-dilation-based quantum algorithm on IBM QASM, showcasing quantum computing's potential in biological physics.

Contribution

It introduces the first quantum algorithm application to simulate the radical pair mechanism in the avian compass, highlighting its generality and potential for biological studies.

Findings

Successful simulation on IBM QASM quantum simulator

First application of quantum algorithms to avian compass mechanism

Opens new avenues for quantum biological research

Abstract

The simulation of open quantum dynamics on quantum circuits has attracted wide interests recently with a variety of quantum algorithms developed and demonstrated. Among these, one particular design of a unitary-dilation-based quantum algorithm is capable of simulating general and complex physical systems. In this paper, we apply this quantum algorithm to simulating the dynamics of the radical pair mechanism in the avian compass. This application is demonstrated on the IBM QASM quantum simulator. This work is the first application of any quantum algorithm to simulating the radical pair mechanism in the avian compass, which not only demonstrates the generality of the quantum algorithm, but also opens new opportunities for studying the avian compass with quantum computing devices.