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Abstract Entangled quantum systems feature non-local correlations that are stronger than could be realized classically. This property makes it possible to perform self-testing, the strongest form of quantum functionality verification, which allows a classical user to deduce the quantum state and measurements used to produce a given set of measurement statistics. While self-testing of quantum states is well understood, self-testing of measurements, especially in high dimensions, remains relatively unexplored. Here we prove that every real projective measurement can be self-tested. Our approach employs the idea that existing self-tests can be extended to verify additional untrusted measurements, known as post-hoc self-testing. We formalize the method of post-hoc self-testing and establish the condition under which it can be applied. Using this condition, we construct self-tests for all real projective measurements. We build on this result to develop an iterative self-testing technique that provides a clear methodology for constructing new self-tests from pre-existing ones.
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Self-testing of a single quantum system from theory to experiment
Abstract Self-testing allows one to characterise quantum systems under minimal assumptions. However, existing schemes rely on quantum nonlocality and cannot be applied to systems that are not entangled. Here, we introduce a robust method that achieves self-testing of individual systems by taking advantage of contextuality. The scheme is based on the simplest contextuality witness for the simplest contextual quantum system—the Klyachko-Can-Binicioğlu-Shumovsky inequality for the qutrit. We establish a lower bound on the fidelity of the state and the measurements as a function of the value of the witness under a pragmatic assumption on the measurements. We apply the method in an experiment on a single trapped40Ca+using randomly chosen measurements and perfect detection efficiency. Using the observed statistics, we obtain an experimental demonstration of self-testing of a single quantum system.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2120757
- PAR ID:
- 10505879
- Publisher / Repository:
- Springer Nature
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- npj Quantum Information
- Volume:
- 9
- Issue:
- 1
- ISSN:
- 2056-6387
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
-
Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41534-023-00769-7
