PHYS3005 Quantum Computation

6 points
(see Timetable)


Details for undergraduate courses
  • Level 3 core unit in the Frontier Physics major sequence
  • Level 3 option in the Physics major sequence
Quantum computation is a rapidly evolving interdisciplinary field, which has attracted researchers from physics, computer science, mathematics, chemistry, and electronic engineering. Instead of brute-force miniaturization of basic electronic components, quantum computation utilizes entirely new design architecture and promises to solve problems that are intractable on conventional computers. It offers the prospect of harnessing nature at a much deeper level than ever before, providing a wealth of new possibilities for information processing, numerical simulation, and secure communication.

In this unit, students will learn about (1) Fundamentals of quantum computing: historical development of computational tools, power of quantum superposition and parallelism, quantum bits and state vectors, quantum circuits and unitary operators, universal quantum computation; (2) Quantum algorithms: Deutsch-Jozsa algorithm, Shor's algorithm for integer factorization, quantum Fourier transform and its properties, quantum phase estimation and finding eigenvalues, Grover's search algorithm, quantum amplitude amplification and estimation, quantum optimisation; (3) Quantum errors: cause and effect, quantum error correction, quantum fault-tolerant computation; (4) Quantum Information: quantum teleportation, quantum cryptography, quantum bit commitment, and quantum communication.
Students are able to (1) apply the principles and conceptsof quantum information, simulation, and computation; (2) demonstrate an understanding of quantum bits, quantum logic gates, quantum circuits; (3) evaluate quantum algorithms and quantum protocols for information processing, simulation, and communication; and (4) communicate effectively through scientific writing and group discussions.
Indicative assessments in this unit are as follows: (1) assignments and (2) final examination. Further information is available in the unit outline.

Unit Coordinator(s)
Professor Jingbo Wang
Unit rules
(24 points of Level 2 units in Physics or Mathematics or Computing) and (MATH1012 Mathematical Theory and Methods (ID 6013) or equivalent)
PHYS4021 Frontiers in Quantum Computation (ID 7468)