MATH 595 - Quantum Complexity and Topology
MATH 595 - Quantum Complexity and Topology
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From Eric Samperton
I give lightening overview of what is known about the computational complexity of TQFT invariants like the Jones polynomial. -
From Eric Samperton
Justin talks about the computational complexity of approximating Cheeger constants of graphs, and the relation of this problem to quantum algorithms for persistent… -
From Eric Samperton
We spell out the precise relation between 3-manifold/knot invariants and the model of topological quantum computing discussed in the previous several meetings. -
From Eric Samperton
We show that if an extended unitary TQFT supports a quantum representation of a braid group with image that is dense inside of the unitary group of an appropriate state… -
From Eric Samperton
We discuss extended (2+1)-dimensional TQFTs, and show how the structure of an extended TQFT allows us to localize the state spaces of surfaces by cutting them up into… -
From Eric Samperton
We mostly say more about (2+1)-dimensional unitary TQFTs. In particular, we define the quantum representations of mapping class groups of surfaces determined by a TQFT.… -
From Eric Samperton
Continuing to follow Kitaev, we consider the toric code as the ground state space of a Hamiltonian constructed from the vertex and plaquette operators. The other… -
From Eric Samperton
I begin a probably-too-zoomed-out overview of the historical development of ideas that begin with topological quantum field theory (TQFT) and lead to topological quantum… -
From Eric Samperton
I finish up calculating the distance of the toric code. I then introduce the stabilizer formalism, which provides a method to construct quantum error correcting codes… -
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From Eric Samperton
BQP is generally expect to be the correct abstraction of "quantum polynomial time," but two practical issues will need to be overcome in order to build quantum… -
From Eric Samperton
Simon's problem is a somewhat contrived oracle problem that provides an oracle separation of BQP and BPP, which should be interpreted as evidence (but not proof)… -
From Eric Samperton
I define BQP ("bounded error quantum polynomial time") and pay lip service to the Solovay-Kitaev theorem (hopefully a student will prove it in a talk at the… -
From Eric Samperton
I follow up more thoroughly on RSAT, an NP-complete satisfiability problem for Boolean reversible circuits. It actually has several variants, of which we discuss 2. … -
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From Eric Samperton
We dig into quantum states in more detail, but still somewhat informally. (We won't do any formal "quantum information" in this class, choosing instead… -
From Eric Samperton
I discuss the four axioms of quantum mechanics, and do some very simple examples of time evolution and measurements of qubits. -
From Eric Samperton
I discuss what's known about the computational complexity of unknot recognition. You might want to watch Marc Lackenby's recent talk after watching this. -
From Eric Samperton
I continue to review some of the usual suspects in complexity: P, NP, PSPACE, EXP and such. I then introduce two basic notions of reduction: polynomial-time many-one… -
From Eric Samperton
I discuss the definition of computability via Turing machines, and a couple of examples and non-examples of computable problems in geometric topology. -
From Eric Samperton
We combinatorialize tame knots using stick presentations, then form knot diagrams by taking regular projections onto a plane. I explain two ways to convert a word in… -
From Eric Samperton
We continue the discussion of Heegaard diagrams from last time. I give some examples, calculate the homology of a lens space, and introduce normal curves. We then… -
From Eric Samperton
I sketch the proof that every (orientable, closed, PL) 3-manifold has a Heegaard splitting. -
From Eric Samperton
We discuss triangulations of manifolds, and then I justify my hot take that the best dimension is three. -
From Eric Samperton
I begin with a very brief overview of the main themes we will explore this semester: interactions between (low-dimensional) topology, computational complexity and…