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Strong empiricalAlgorithmsBlock encoding · LCU

Linear combination of unitaries

A block-encoding primitive that turns a weighted sum of unitary operations into one larger unitary circuit.

lcublock encodinghamiltonian simulationamplitude amplification

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Many quantum algorithms need a non-unitary object such as a Hamiltonian or matrix polynomial. LCU supplies it indirectly: an ancilla prepares coefficients, a SELECT operation chooses each unitary, and unpreparation exposes the weighted sum in a success block.

Circuit & simulation
Success ancilla = 075%
Other branch25%
What this takes and returns
TakesNothingWhat joins here

No input port at this edge: the record publishes no gate sequence and no register, so there is nothing here to read one off — and unlike a declared hole, nothing has been recorded about what belongs here.

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ReturnsNothingWhat joins here

No output port at this edge: the record publishes no gate sequence and no register, so there is nothing here to read one off — and unlike a declared hole, nothing has been recorded about what belongs here.

Nothing in the Atlas meets this end.

This record publishes no gate sequence and no register, so there is nothing here to read an interface off. Absent rather than empty. See all 152 →

Where this sits

This record is named by the layer graph at:

  • LCHS — linear combination of Hamiltonian simulation Method

    Takes A block-encoding of A(t)A(t) with a normalization αAmaxtA(t)\alpha_A \ge \max_t \lVert A(t)\rVert, preparation unitaries for u0u_0 and bb, the evolution time TT, and an error tolerance ε\varepsilon. Returns A state proportional to u(T)u(T), or a history state, together with separately stated matrix-query and initial-state-query complexity.

  • LCHS with the improved kernel Method

    Takes A block-encoding of A(t)A(t) with a normalization αAmaxtA(t)\alpha_A \ge \max_t \lVert A(t)\rVert, preparation unitaries for u0u_0 and bb, the evolution time TT, and an error tolerance ε\varepsilon. Returns A state proportional to u(T)u(T), or a history state, together with separately stated matrix-query and initial-state-query complexity.

  • Kernel-weighted combination of unitary propagators Method

    Takes The generator A(t)A(t) with no Hermiticity assumed, the interval [0,T][0,T], and an error tolerance ε\varepsilon. Returns A Hermitian generator or a family of them, the enlargement of the space that carrying them cost, and the map that reads the original solution back — with the weight that map applies stated, because that weight is where the non-unitarity was moved to rather than removed.

  • Chebyshev series by linear combination of unitaries Method

    Takes A block-encoding of AA together with its subnormalisation α\alpha; a target function ff on [1,1][-1,1]; an error budget ε\varepsilon. Returns A circuit implementing a block-encoding of f(A)f(A) to error ε\varepsilon, together with the query count in UU and UU^\dagger.

  • Block-encoding from a Pauli decomposition Method

    Takes An access model for AA — sparse-access oracles, a Pauli or LCU decomposition, a purification, or an explicit arithmetic description — plus a target precision ε\varepsilon. Returns A unitary UU on s+as+a qubits, its subnormalization α\alpha, and its ancilla/flag count aa. Because U=1\lVert U\rVert = 1, Gilyén, Su, Low and Wiebe's Definition 43 forces Aα+ε\lVert A\rVert \le \alpha + \varepsilon.

  • Truncated-Taylor LCU simulation Method

    Takes An access model for HH — a sum of efficiently exponentiable terms, sparse-access oracles, or a block-encoding — plus an evolution time tt and a target error ε\varepsilon. Returns A circuit approximating eiHte^{-iHt} to within ε\varepsilon, with a stated query or gate count, an ancilla count, and the norm parameter — sparsity times Hmax\lVert H\rVert_{\max}, or the LCU 1-norm — that the cost is measured against.

How it works

LCU represents H = Σₗ αₗUₗ using a normalized ancilla state and a SELECT oracle. After PREPARE†–SELECT–PREPARE, the desired operator appears in a block with amplitude 1/λ. The normalization and success probability are part of the algorithm, not bookkeeping details. A complete resource estimate must include the cost of preparing the coefficient state, implementing every controlled Uₗ, and amplifying or postselecting the success block.

Implementation
Native
lcu_two_term.py
from math import acos, sqrt
from qiskit import QuantumCircuit

alpha0, alpha1 = 0.75, 0.25
qc = QuantumCircuit(2, 1)
qc.ry(2 * acos(sqrt(alpha0)), 0)  # PREPARE
qc.cx(0, 1)  # SELECT: U0=I, U1=X
qc.ry(-2 * acos(sqrt(alpha0)), 0)  # PREPARE†
qc.measure(0, 0)  # retain the ancilla=0 branch

FINAL_CIRCUIT = qc
Quantum vs classical

Classical baseline

Classically, a weighted operator sum is formed directly; the cost is matrix dimension and sparsity rather than ancilla success probability.

Quantum claim

LCU exposes a normalized operator block using controlled unitary queries, but coefficient normalization and amplitude amplification can dominate the practical circuit cost.

How to compare

Report λ, postselection probability, SELECT cost, and amplification overhead beside any claimed simulation advantage.

Declared gaps

Nobody has reviewed this record for gaps yet.

Literature & references
Hamiltonian Simulation Using Linear Combinations of Unitary Operations2012 · Andrew M. Childs, Nathan Wiebe

Introduces the LCU approach and its near-deterministic implementation and amplification structure.

arxiv.org/abs/1202.5822