Limitations of Quantum Simulation Examined by Simulating a Pairing Hamiltonian Using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance

Kenneth R. Brown, Robert J. Clark, and Isaac L. Chuang, "Limitations of Quantum Simulation Examined by Simulating a Pairing Hamiltonian Using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance"
PRL 97, 050504 (2006)

In this paper, my old grad school buddy Ken Brown (& co.) reports on combined theoretical and experimental (NMR) tests on the effects of control errors, fault tolerance, and error bounding for quantum-computer based simulations of pairing model Hamiltonians. Ultimately they conclude that quantum simulations may outperform classical simulations for large problems where only limited precision is desired, but in the current case find the simulations to be sensititve to systematic errors, and more importantly that current fault tolerant implementations are inefficient as compared to the "Trotterization" of the unitary evolution.