We report the experimental realization of strong longitudinal (ZZ) coupling between two superconducting transmon qubits achieved solely through capacitive engineering. By systematicallyvarying the qubit frequency detuning, we measure cross-Kerr inter-qubit interaction strengths ranging from 10 MHz up to 350 MHz, more than an order of magnitude larger than previously observed in similar capacitively coupled systems. In this configuration, the qubits enter a strong-interaction regime in which the excitation of one qubit inhibits that of its neighbor, demonstrating a dynamical blockade mediated entirely by the engineered ZZ coupling. Circuit quantization simulations accurately reproduce the experimental results, while perturbative models confirm the theoretical origin of the energy shift as a hybridization between the computational states and higher-excitation manifolds. We establish a robust and scalable method to access interaction-dominated physics in superconducting circuits, providing a pathway towards solid-state implementations of globally controlled quantum architectures and cooperative many-body dynamics.
Magic is a non-classical resource whose efficient manipulation is fundamental to advancing efficient and scalable fault-tolerant quantum computing. Quantum advantage is possible onlyif both magic and entanglement are present. Of particular interest is non-local magic- the fraction of the resource that cannot be distilled (or erased) by local unitary operations – which is a necessary feature for quantum complex behavior. We perform the first experimental demonstration of non-local magic in a superconducting Quantum Processing Unit (QPU). Direct access to the QPU device enables us to identify and characterize the dominant noise mechanisms intrinsic to the quantum hardware. We observe excellent agreement between theory and experiment without the need for any free parameter in the noise modeling of our system and shows the experimental capability of harnessing both local and non-local magic resources separately, thereby offering a promising path towards more reliable pre-fault-tolerant quantum devices and to advance hardware-aware research in quantum information in the near term. Finally, the methods and tools developed in this work are conducive to the experimental realization of efficient purity estimation (featuring exponential speedup) and the decoding of Hawking radiation from a toy-model of a Black Hole.
Besides noticeable challenges in implementing low-error single- and two-qubit quantum gates in superconducting quantum processors, the readout technique and analysis are a key factorin determining the efficiency and performance of quantum processors. Being able to efficiently implement quantum algorithms involving entangling gates and asses their output is mandatory for quantum utility. In a transmon-based 5-qubit superconducting quantum processor, we compared the performance of quantum circuits involving an increasing level of complexity, from single-qubit circuits to maximally entangled Bell circuits. This comparison highlighted the importance of the readout analysis and helped us optimize the protocol for more advanced quantum algorithms. Here we report the results obtained from the analysis of the outputs of quantum circuits using two readout paradigms, referred to as „multiplied readout probabilities“ and „conditional readout probabilities“. The first method is suitable for single-qubit circuits, while the second is essential for accurately interpreting the outputs of circuits involving two-qubit gates.