Institute of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics
in the
Technical Faculty of
Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel
Quantum Computing
This one-term course gives an overview of recent research in a new, as
yet somewhat speculative area of computer science. Quantum computing
relates to an entirely novel concept of performing computations
which, beyond being fully Turing compatible, is expected to make some
inroads into the class of problems that are intractable by
contemporary computers. It is solely based on quantum mechanical
phenomena, i.e., on the physics of elementary particles such as
electrons and photons, and on the formal apparatus to describe them
(essentially operations in Hilbert spaces).
The course sets out with an easy-to-follow introduction to the bare
essentials of quantum mechanics (probability amplitudes, basic
quantum states and their superpositions, unitary state transformations,
quantum entanglement, measurements on quantum states), and then
proceeds to introduce the notions of quantum bits (qubits), quantum
registers, quantum (logic) gates, and reversible quantum computations.
The course then addresses typical quantum algorithms (quantum
Fourier transforms, Shor's factorization algorithm, search algorithms)
and discusses some systematic methods of designing them.
Other subjects include quantum finite automata, Turing machines and
some first ideas as to how to realize full--fledged quantum computers.
The course is intended for graduate CS students and primarily of a
theoretical nature. Pre-reqisites are some basic knowledge of
classical physics and of linear algebra.
Literature
- Richard P. Feynman:
Lectures in Physics | Vol. III Quantum Mechanics |
Addison-Wesley 1966 | ISBN 0-201-02118-8-P
- Josef Gruska:
Quantum Computing |
McCraw Hill 1999 | ISBN 007 709503 0
- Colin P. Williams | Scott H. Clearwater:
Explorations in Quantum Computing |
Springer 1998 | ISBN 0-387-94768-X
- Gerard J. Milburn:
The Feynman Processor |
Perseus Books 1998 | ISBN 0-7382-0173-1
- John Preskill:
Lecture Notes for Physics 229
Quantum Information and Computing |
Caltech Sept. 1998
(Internet link will be given later)
- Hoi-Kwong Lo | Tim Spiller | Sandu Popescu (Eds):
Introduction to Quantum Computation and Information |
Worldscientific 1998 | ISBN 981-02-3399-X
- A.O. Pittenger:
An Introduction to Quantum Computing Algorithms |
Birkhaeuser 1999 | ISBN 0-8176-4127-0
pointer to actual course WS 00/01
pointer to lecture notes WS 00/01
wk@informatik.uni-kiel.de
Last modified: February 10, 2000