Benchmarking Digital-Analog Quantum Computation

TL;DR

This paper analyzes Digital-Analog Quantum Computation (DAQC), comparing its scalability and efficiency to digital quantum computing across various algorithms and connectivities.

Contribution

It extends DAQC implementation to arbitrary connectivities and systematically studies its scaling properties and performance.

Findings

DAQC is generally less advantageous than digital quantum computing for most algorithms.

The analysis covers three quantum algorithms with different connectivities.

DAQC's disadvantages are highlighted except in a few specific cases.

Abstract

Digital-Analog Quantum Computation (DAQC) has recently been proposed as an alternative to the standard paradigm of digital quantum computation. DAQC creates entanglement through a continuous or analog evolution of the whole device, rather than by applying two-qubit gates. This manuscript describes an in-depth analysis of DAQC by extending its implementation to arbitrary connectivities and by performing the first systematic study of its scaling properties. We specify the analysis for three examples of quantum algorithms, showing that except for a few specific cases, DAQC is in fact disadvantageous with respect to the digital case.