An Evidence of Addressing Coherence Errors in VQE Observables by Pulse-level VQE Approach

Abstract

Quantum computing is an advanced area of computing that leverages the principles of quantum mechanics. Quantum computing holds the potential to revolutionize various fields by handling problems that are currently intractable for classical computers. This research focuses on Variational Quantum Eigensolvers (VQEs) in the Noisy Intermediate Scale Quantum (NISQ) era. We introduce and evaluate over-rotation and under-rotation errors in the measurement process, which are critical for obtaining accurate expectation values of Hamiltonians. Our study aims to determine the extent to which these errors affect the estimated ground state energy and the computational cost in terms of optimization iterations. We conducted experiments on H2 and HeH+ molecules, varying the rotation angle, and recorded the estimated energy and optimization iterations. Our findings indicate that the pulse-level VQE algorithm exhibits resilience to quantum errors in terms of accuracy. Additionally, our results suggest that less frequent calibration of measurement rotation pulses may be sufficient, thereby saving substantial time and computational resources. However, it is important to note that while accuracy remains stable, the iteration count may still vary, necessitating a trade-off between calibration frequency and computational cost. Our work complements previous research by focusing on the observable aspect of VQEs, which has been largely overlooked. This detailed analysis contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of VQE performance in the NISQ era and supports the design and implementation of more efficient quantum algorithms.