Passive quantum error correction of photon loss at breakeven

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates a passive quantum error correction method using a steady-state driven dissipative system that preserves a logical qubit beyond the photon-lifetime limit, offering a hardware-efficient alternative to active correction.

Contribution

It introduces a continuous, passive quantum error correction scheme at the breakeven point using a superconducting cavity and transmon, surpassing photon-lifetime limitations.

Findings

Achieved about 5% logical qubit preservation beyond photon lifetime

Implemented a binomial encoding for quantum error correction

Showed passive correction can be competitive with active methods

Abstract

Physical qubits in a quantum computer are often represented by superposition states of single particles or excitations. Decay of the excitation itself is a fundamental error channel that is difficult to overcome via external drive or control techniques. Quantum error correcting codes, which encode information in superpositions involving multiple excitations, provide a path to preserve information beyond the capacity of individual excitations, but typically require exquisite active operations on the system. Here, we demonstrate a steady-state driven dissipative quantum system, composed of a superconducting cavity and a transmon ancilla, that preserves a logical qubit beyond the photon-lifetime limit by about 5% using a binomial encoding. This realization of continuous quantum error correction at the breakeven point highlights the quantitative competitiveness of passive correction strategies while circumventing some demanding hardware requirements of its active counterparts.