dorsal/arxiv
View SchemaProbabilistic Model--Checking of Quantum Protocols
| Authors | Simon Gay, Rajagopal Nagarajan, Nikolaos Papanikolaou |
|---|---|
| Categories | |
| ArXiv ID | quant-ph/0504007 |
| URL | https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0504007 |
Abstract
We establish fundamental and general techniques for formal verification of quantum protocols. Quantum protocols are novel communication schemes involving the use of quantum-mechanical phenomena for representation, storage and transmission of data. As opposed to quantum computers, quantum communication systems can and have been implemented using present-day technology; therefore, the ability to model and analyse such systems rigorously is of primary importance. While current analyses of quantum protocols use a traditional mathematical approach and require considerable understanding of the underlying physics, we argue that automated verification techniques provide an elegant alternative. We demonstrate these techniques through the use of PRISM, a probabilistic model-checking tool. Our approach is conceptually simpler than existing proofs, and allows us to disambiguate protocol definitions and assess their properties. It also facilitates detailed analyses of actual implemented systems. We illustrate our techniques by modelling a selection of quantum protocols (namely superdense coding, quantum teleportation, and quantum error correction) and verifying their basic correctness properties. Our results provide a foundation for further work on modelling and analysing larger systems such as those used for quantum cryptography, in which basic protocols are used as components.
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"abstract": "We establish fundamental and general techniques for formal verification of\nquantum protocols. Quantum protocols are novel communication schemes involving\nthe use of quantum-mechanical phenomena for representation, storage and\ntransmission of data. As opposed to quantum computers, quantum communication\nsystems can and have been implemented using present-day technology; therefore,\nthe ability to model and analyse such systems rigorously is of primary\nimportance.\n While current analyses of quantum protocols use a traditional mathematical\napproach and require considerable understanding of the underlying physics, we\nargue that automated verification techniques provide an elegant alternative. We\ndemonstrate these techniques through the use of PRISM, a probabilistic\nmodel-checking tool. Our approach is conceptually simpler than existing proofs,\nand allows us to disambiguate protocol definitions and assess their properties.\nIt also facilitates detailed analyses of actual implemented systems. We\nillustrate our techniques by modelling a selection of quantum protocols (namely\nsuperdense coding, quantum teleportation, and quantum error correction) and\nverifying their basic correctness properties. Our results provide a foundation\nfor further work on modelling and analysing larger systems such as those used\nfor quantum cryptography, in which basic protocols are used as components.",
"arxiv_id": "quant-ph/0504007",
"authors": [
"Simon Gay",
"Rajagopal Nagarajan",
"Nikolaos Papanikolaou"
],
"categories": [
"quant-ph",
"cs.LO"
],
"title": "Probabilistic Model--Checking of Quantum Protocols",
"url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0504007"
},
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