Quantum Equation of Motion with Orbital Optimization for Computing Molecular Properties in Near-Term Quantum Computing.

Determining the properties of molecules and materials is one of the premier applications of quantum computing. A major question in the field is how to use imperfect near-term quantum computers to solve problems of practical value. Inspired by the recently developed variants of the quantum counterpart of the equation-of-motion (qEOM) approach and the orbital-optimized variational quantum eigensolver (oo-VQE), we present a quantum algorithm (oo-VQE-qEOM) for the calculation of molecular properties by computing expectation values on a quantum computer. We perform noise-free quantum simulations of BeH2 in the series of STO-3G/6-31G/6-31G* basis sets and of H4 and H2O in 6-31G using an active space of four electrons and four spatial orbitals (8 qubits) to evaluate excitation energies, electronic absorption, and, for twisted H4, circular dichroism spectra. We demonstrate that the proposed algorithm can reproduce the results of conventional classical CASSCF calculations for these molecular systems.

Which Options Exist for NISQ-Friendly Linear Response Formulations?

Linear response (LR) theory is a powerful tool in classic quantum chemistry crucial to understanding photoinduced processes in chemistry and biology. However, performing simulations for large systems and in the case of strong electron correlation remains challenging. Quantum computers are poised to facilitate the simulation of such systems, and recently, a quantum linear response formulation (qLR) was introduced [Kumar et al., J. Chem. Theory Comput. 2023, 19, 9136-9150]. To apply qLR to near-term quantum computers beyond a minimal basis set, we here introduce a resource-efficient qLR theory, using a truncated active-space version of the multiconfigurational self-consistent field LR ansatz. Therein, we investigate eight different near-term qLR formalisms that utilize novel operator transformations that allow the qLR equations to be performed on near-term hardware. Simulating excited state potential energy curves and absorption spectra for various test cases, we identify two promising candidates, dubbed "proj LRSD" and "all-proj LRSD".

The variational quantum eigensolver self-consistent field method within a polarizable embedded framework.

We formulate and implement the Variational Quantum Eigensolver Self Consistent Field (VQE-SCF) algorithm in combination with polarizable embedding (PE), thereby extending PE to the regime of quantum computing. We test the resulting algorithm, PE-VQE-SCF, on quantum simulators and demonstrate that the computational stress on the quantum device is only slightly increased in terms of gate counts compared to regular VQE-SCF. On the other hand, no increase in shot noise was observed. We illustrate how PE-VQE-SCF may lead to the modeling of real chemical systems using a simulation of the reaction barrier of the Diels-Alder reaction between furan and ethene as an example.

Toward Quantum Computing with Molecular Electronics.

In this study, we explore the use of molecules and molecular electronics for quantum computing. We construct one-qubit gates using one-electron scattering in molecules and two-qubit controlled-phase gates using electron-electron scattering along metallic leads. Furthermore, we propose a class of circuit implementations, and show initial applications of the framework by illustrating one-qubit gates using the molecular electronic structure of molecular hydrogen as a baseline model.

A quantum computing view on unitary coupled cluster theory.

We present a review of the Unitary Coupled Cluster (UCC) ansatz and related ansätze which are used to variationally solve the electronic structure problem on quantum computers. A brief history of coupled cluster (CC) methods is provided, followed by a broad discussion of the formulation of CC theory. This includes touching on the merits and difficulties of the method and several variants, UCC among them, in the classical context, to motivate their applications on quantum computers. In the core of the text, the UCC ansatz and its implementation on a quantum computer are discussed at length, in addition to a discussion on several derived and related ansätze specific to quantum computing. The review concludes with a unified perspective on the discussed ansätze, attempting to bring them under a common framework, as well as with a reflection upon open problems within the field.