A Tour of Adiabatic Quantum Computing
Nicholas R. Allgood · IntechOpen eBooks · 2023
Different types and approaches for using quantum mechanical events for computation have developed quickly with the quantum technology revolution. One of these, adiabatic quantum computing, uses the adiabatic theorem as a paradigm for computation. According to the adiabatic theorem, if conditions gradually change and a system is permitted to adjust its configuration (changing the probability density), the associated eigenstate will be of the final Hamiltonian if the system starts in an eigenstate of its initial Hamiltonian. Simply put, a quantum mechanical system that is subjected to rapidly changing and varying conditions, there isn’t enough time for a function to adapt which leaves the spatial probability density unchanged. A closely related optimization process that utilizes the adiabatic theorem known as quantum annealing, finds a global minimum over a candidate set of solutions by processing quantum fluctuations. Quantum annealing is used primarily in combinatorial optimization problems where the search space is large and discrete, containing multiple local minima.