Automatic Quantum Computer Programming: A Genetic Programming Approach

This is a book about the frontiers of computer science that have re­ cently been opened by work in quantum mechanics, but it is also a book about the use of recently developed automatic programming technolo­ gies to explore those frontiers. The automatic programming technologies themselves issue from another interdisciplinary frontier of computer sci­ ence ― one born of the intersection of computer science with evolution­ ary biology. So this is a book about two frontiers of computer science, one being used primarily for the sake of exploring the other. The selection of topics in this book was made with the intention of showing how genetic programming can be usefully applied to certain problems in quantum computing. To this end, it provides a basic intro­ duction to quantum computing for non-physicists and it also provides a basic introduction to genetic programming for non-computer-scientists. These treatments should be comprehensible to scientifically literate read­ ers who have, at minimum, a passing familiarity with undergradua- level computer science (e.g. programming concepts) and mathematics (e.g. simple linear algebra). No background in physics is assumed.

Computer science will be radically transformed if ongoing efforts to build large-scale quantum computers eventually succeed and if the properties of these computers meet optimistic expectations. Nevertheless, computer scientists still lack a thorough understanding of the power of quantum computing, and it is not always clear how best to utilize the power that it is understood. This dilemma exists because quantum algorithms are difficult to grasp and even more difficult to write. Despite large-scale international efforts, only a few important quantum algorithms are documented, leaving many essential questions about the potential of quantum algorithms unanswered.

These unsolved problems are ideal challenges for the application of automatic programming technologies. Genetic programming techniques, in particular, have already produced several new quantum algorithms and it is reasonable to expect further discoveries in the future. Theses methods will help researchers to discover how additional practical problems can be solved using quantum computers, and they will also help to guide theoretical work on both the power and limits of quantum computing.

Automatic Quantum Computer Programming provides an introduction to quantum computing for non-physicists, as well as an introduction to genetic programming for non-computer-scientists. The book explores several ways in which genetic programming can support automatic quantum computer programming and presents detailed descriptions of specific techniques, along with several examples of their human-competitive performance on specific problems. Source code for the author’s QGAME quantum computer simulator is included as an appendix, and pointers to additional online resources furnish the reader with an array of tools for automatic quantum computer programming.

"I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It not only introduces quantum computing, but also genetic programming and theauthor’s original genetic programming system ‘PushGP’ which is used to evolve the quantum algorithms discussed in later chapters. The book is comprehensive, with wonderfully clear illustrations and comes with a Lisp-based quantum simulator program. Truly recommended for readers interested in gaining knowledge about exciting frontiers of computer science."

―Wolfgang Banzhaf
Memorial University of Newfoundland