Course Description: The first half of this course will be a quick introduction to the basic ideas underlying the promise of quantum computation. The second half will focus on three specific aspects of realizing quantum computers: first, the interface between quantum algorithms and physics (can classes of quantum algorithms be mapped into problems interesting to physicists?); second, the design of practical quantum computing hardware and the specialization of algorithms to that hardware; and, third, the possible realization of the "topological quantum computing" approach using quantum many-body systems exhibiting "topological phases."

Academic Departments: Physics, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science

Course Instructors: Bill Brinkman, Robert Calderbank and Shivaji Sondhi

Course Time: Wednesday 1:30 to 3:00

Course Location:TO BE SUPPLIED BY DEPT OFFICE(preferably 343)

Type of course: Topics course

Required reading material: 

1. Quantum Computation and Quantum Information by M. A. Nielsen and I. L. Chuang, Cambridge (2000).
2.  Lecture Notes by John Preskill (http://www.theory.caltech.edu/%7Epreskill/ph219/index.html#lecture)
3. Research/review articles on special topics ( to be provided)