A universal framework for the quantum simulation of Yang–Mills theory

Quantum computers promise to simulate complex quantum field theories that are intractable for classical computers, potentially revealing new physics in strongly interacting systems. Current approaches for simulating Yang-Mills gauge theories face significant technical barriers due to complex group structures and complicated truncation schemes that vary drastically between different theories. Here we show that the orbifold lattice formulation provides a universal framework for quantum simulation of Yang-Mills theories with arbitrary gauge groups and dimensions. Our approach reduces all theories to the same simple Hamiltonian form, enabling implementation with standard quantum gates regardless of system complexity. We demonstrate explicit quantum circuits using only controlled-NOT and single-qubit operations, with concrete resource estimates for time evolution algorithms. This universal framework simplifies quantum simulation of gauge theories and enables systematic scaling to larger systems on fault-tolerant quantum computers.

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Publication Details

Journal
Communications Physics
Published
2026-02-19
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s42005-025-02421-6
Citations
1
Primary Topic
Quantum Computing Algorithms and Architecture
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
52.10

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A universal framework for the quantum simulation of Yang–Mills theory

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Quantum Computing Algorithms and Architecture
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A universal framework for the quantum simulation of Yang–Mills theory

Shunji Matsuura, Masanori Hanada, Enrico Rinaldi, Franco Nori, Jad C. Halimeh, Andreas Schäfer
article en
1 citations

Abstract

Quantum computers promise to simulate complex quantum field theories that are intractable for classical computers, potentially revealing new physics in strongly interacting systems. Current approaches for simulating Yang-Mills gauge theories face significant technical barriers due to complex group structures and complicated truncation schemes that vary drastically between different theories. Here we show that the orbifold lattice formulation provides a universal framework for quantum simulation of Yang-Mills theories with arbitrary gauge groups and dimensions. Our approach reduces all theories to the same simple Hamiltonian form, enabling implementation with standard quantum gates regardless of system complexity. We demonstrate explicit quantum circuits using only controlled-NOT and single-qubit operations, with concrete resource estimates for time evolution algorithms. This universal framework simplifies quantum simulation of gauge theories and enables systematic scaling to larger systems on fault-tolerant quantum computers.

Communications PhysicsVol. 9(1)
Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JP), University of British Columbia (CA), Queen Mary University of London (GB), University of Michigan (US), Center for Theoretical Physics (PL), Michigan Medicine (US), Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics (DE), Munich Center for Quantum Science and Technology (DE), American Academy of Implant Dentistry (US), RIKEN Nishina Center (JP), RIKEN Center for Advanced Photonics (JP), University of Regensburg (DE), KDDI (Japan) (JP), University of Guelph (CA), Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (DE)
European Commission, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, HORIZON EUROPE Framework Programme, Science and Technology Facilities Council, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Office of Naval Research, Core Research for Evolutional Science and Technology, Moonshot Research and Development Program
Openalex Percentile: Top 0%
Quantum Computing Algorithms and Architecture
52.10
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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