CS 151-02 Quantum Computer Science

The universe at the sub-atomic scale is governed by quantum mechanical laws, which fundamentally differ from classical laws of motion. What is the nature of computation in such scales? Can we use quantum mechanical particles to perform computations? These are the core questions of the field of quantum computing. In this course, we present an elementary-level introduction to the computer science foundations of quantum computing. Topics include Hilbert spaces, quantum entanglement, quantum measurements, quantum circuits, quantum protocols and algorithms, Hamiltonians and the ground state problem, and quantum error-correcting codes. Students from different areas of engineering and sciences, such as computer science, physics, electrical engineering, mathematics, or chemistry, who wish to learn about the computer science foundations of quantum computers can benefit from this class. The main focus of this course is on the theoretical foundations of quantum computing; mathematical enthusiasm and knowledge in areas such as linear algebra, algorithms, discrete mathematics, and calculus are required.