Résumé de section

►10 - 11 Sept: Introduction and interference experiments

  • Wednesdays Room CE1 3 at 14h15 - 16h Course lectures 

    Thursdays Room INF2 at 15h15 -17h exercises and sometimes first hour 15h15-16h dedicated to class and/or discussion (announced on moodle page day before).

    Instructors:  nicolas.macris@epfl.ch  and yihui.quek@epfl.ch

    Teaching assistant:  perrine.vantalon@epfl.ch

    Student assistants: gopal.dahale@epfl.ch, cherilyn.christen@epfl.ch, timothe.jobin@epfl.ch, ekaterina.pankovets@epfl.ch

    Description: Information is stored and processed in hardware components. With their miniaturization the concept of classical bit must be replaced by the notion of quantum bit. After having introduced the basics of quantum physics for "discrete" systems, the basic spin 1/2 qubit and its manipulation on the Bloch sphere are illustrated. This course then develops the subjects of communications, cryptography, quantum correlations, and introduces elementary concepts  of quantum physics with applications in information theory such as the density matrix and von Neumann's entropy. The course is intended for an audience with no knowledge of quantum physics and elementary knowledge of classical physics and linear algebra. Practical exercises, simulations and implementations on NISQ machines will also be covered during the semester. This course prepares students for more advanced quantum information classes.

    Course and exercices are in presence. 

    Lecture notes  (in french - we treat only a subset of these notes this semester)

    Extra references for reading will also be given for some of the lectures (see in weekly schedule below)

    Videos of class will be accessible here VIDEOS (these only serve as an aid and are not meant to replace in class presence. The material and order of classes and videos might also differ.)

    Grading scheme: 4 graded homeworks 20%, miniproject 10%, final exam 70%. You will upload your homeworks on the moodle page.  The mini-project will start sometime during the second part of the semester.

    Final exam: Tuesday 20.01.2026 from 09h15 to 12h15 rooms CE 1.1 (from Agrawal to Jouveaux), CE 1.3 (from Katanaev to Zouzou).

    Cheat-sheet: one recto-verso A4 page is allowed. Handwritten or latex with readable sized characters

    BIBLIOGRAPHIE

    Michel Le Bellac: A short introduction to quantum information and quantum computation, Cambridge University press 2006. A small pedagogical book introducing physical aspects of the subject.

    N. David Mermin: Quantum Computer Science, An introduction, Cambridge University press 2007. An introduction written by a physicist for computer scientists.

    Neil Gershenfeld, The Physics of Information Technology, Cambridge University Press 2000, An introduction to various phenomena, classical and quantum, underpinning information technologies.

    Michael A. Nielsen and Isaac Chuang, Quantum Computation and Quantum Information, Cambridge University Press 2000. Complete reference probably somewhat more advanced than these lectures.

    OTHER

    * For an introduction to QM read chapters 1 et 2 of Feynman Lectures vol III.

    * Double slit experiment: old and new

    * Interference of C60 molecules

    * From Cbits to Qbits: Teaching computer scientists quantum mechanics, by D. Mermin

    * There is plenty of room at the bottom a historical conference of R. Feynman on miniaturization

    * http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/2014/nov/13/secure-quantum-communications-go-the-distance

    * QKD-history.pdf an article by Gilles Brassard: Brief History of Quantum Cryptography: A Personal Perspective

►10 - 11 Sept: Introduction and interference experiments