Experimental implementation of dimension-dependent contextuality inequality

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new dimension-dependent contextuality inequality that certifies quantum system dimensionality and quantumness, validated through photon experiments surpassing classical bounds and closing previous loopholes.

Contribution

The work presents a novel contextuality inequality that cannot be cheated by classical systems, enabling robust certification of quantum system dimensions.

Findings

Violations of a CHSH-based contextuality inequality observed

Surpassed the qutrit bound of the CGLMP4 inequality

Demonstrated noise-robust tests of qubit number

Abstract

We present a derivation and experimental implementation of a dimension-dependent contextuality inequality to certify both the quantumness and dimensionality of a given system. Existing methods for certification of the dimension of quantum system can be cheated by using larger classical systems, creating a potential loophole in these benchmarks. Our approach uses contextuality inequalities that cannot be violated by classical systems thus closing the previous loophole. We validate this framework experimentally with photons, observing violations of a CHSH-based contextuality inequality and surpassing the qutrit bound of the CGLMP4-based contextuality inequality. These show that contextuality can be used for noise-robust tests of the number of qubits.