Unit information: Quantum Information Theory in 2020/21

Unit name	Quantum Information Theory
Unit code	MATHM5610
Credit points	10
Level of study	M/7
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 1A (weeks 1 - 6)
Unit director	Professor. Linden
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	MATH11300 Analysis 1A, MATH11400 Analysis 1B, MATH11007 Calculus 1, MATH11005 Linear Algebra and Geometry or COMS12100 Introduction to Software Engineering or 1st year Physics units.
Co-requisites	None
School/department	School of Mathematics
Faculty	Faculty of Science

Description including Unit Aims

Unit Aims

The course aims to give a self-contained introduction to quantum information theory accessible to students with backgrounds in mathematics, physics or computer science. Additionally, in conjunction with other units, it should provide suitably able and inclined students with the necessary background for further study and research at the postgraduate level.

Unit Description

In the past fifteen years the new subject of quantum information theory has emerged which both offers fundamentally new methods of processing information and also suggests deep links between the well-established disciplines of quantum theory and information theory and computer science. The unit aims to give a self-contained introduction to quantum information theory accessible to students with backgrounds in mathematics and physics; it is also suitable for mathematically inclined students from computer science. The course will begin with a brief overview of the relevant background from quantum mechanics and information theory. The main theme of the course, quantum information and entanglement, then follows. The subject will be illustrated by some of the remarkable recent ideas including quantum teleportation and quantum computation.

Relation to Other Units

The unit aims to be self-contained: it does not require knowledge of any particular course in previous years. It is a pre-requisite for MATHM0023 Quantum Computation.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Learning Objectives

At the end of the unit the student should:

• Understand the concept of the qubit as the fundamental unit of quantum information
• Be familiar with the ideas of quantum entanglement and non-locality and understand examples of their use and characterisation.
• Understand examples of quantum information processing, including quantum teleportation

Transferable Skills

The ability to assimilate and synthesize material from a wide variety of areas of science.

Teaching Information

The unit will be taught through a combination of

• synchronous online and, if subsequently possible, face-to-face lectures
• asynchronous online materials, including narrated presentations and worked examples
• guided asynchronous independent activities such as problem sheets and/or other exercises
• synchronous weekly group problem/example classes, workshops and/or tutorials
• synchronous weekly group tutorials
• synchronous weekly office hours

Assessment Information

100% Timed, open-book examination

Raw scores on the examinations will be determined according to the marking scheme written on the examination paper. The marking scheme, indicating the maximum score per question, is a guide to the relative weighting of the questions. Raw scores are moderated as described in the Undergraduate Handbook.

Reading and References

Recommended

• Richard P. Feynman, Feynman Lectures on Computation, Addison Wesley 1996
• Michael A. Nielsen and Isaac L. Chuang, Quantum Computation and Quantum Information Theory, Cambridge University Press, 2000