Class Description

BQP: Bounded-Error Quantum Polynomial-Time

The class of decision problems solvable in polynomial time by a quantum Turing machine, with at most 1/3 probability of error.

One can equivalently define BQP as the class of decision problems solvable by a uniform family of polynomial-size quantum circuits, with at most 1/3 probability of error [Yao93]. Any universal gate set can be used as a basis; however, a technicality is that the transition amplitudes must be efficiently computable, since otherwise one could use them to encode the solutions to hard problems (see [ADH97]).

BQP is often identified as the class of feasible problems for quantum computers.

Contains the factoring and discrete logarithm problems [Sho97], the hidden Legendre symbol problem [DHI02], the Pell's equation and principal ideal problems [Hal02], and some other problems not thought to be in BPP.

Defined in [BV97], where it is also shown that BQP contains BPP and is contained in P with a #P oracle.

BQPBQP = BQP [BV97].

[ADH97] showed that BQP is contained in PP, and [FR98] showed that BQP is contained in AWPP.

There exist oracles relative to which:

If P=BQP relative to a random oracle then BQP=BPP [FR98].

Linked From

AmpP-BQP: BQP Restricted To AmpP States

Similar to TreeBQP except that the quantum computer's state at each time step is restricted to being exponentially close to a state in AmpP (that is, a state for which the amplitudes are computable by a classical polynomial-size circuit).

Defined in [Aar03b], where it was also observed that AmpP-BQP is contained in the third level of PH, just as TreeBQP is.

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AWPP: Almost WPP

The class of decision problems solvable by an NP machine such that for some polynomial-time computable (i.e. FP) function f,

  1. If the answer is "no," then the difference between the number of accepting and rejecting paths is non-negative and at most 2-poly(n)f(x).
  2. If the answer is "yes," then the difference is between (1-2-poly(n))f(x) and f(x).

Defined in [FFK94].

Contains BQP [FR98], WAPP [BGM02], LWPP, and WPP.

Contained in APP [Fen02].

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BQP/log: BQP With Logarithmic-Size Karp-Lipton Advice

Same as BQP/poly except that the advice is O(log n) bits instead of a polynomial number.

Contained in BQP/mlog.

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BQP/poly: BQP With Polynomial-Size Karp-Lipton Advice

Is to BQP/mpoly as ∃BPP is to MA. Namely, the BQP machine is required to give some answer with probability at least 2/3 even if the advice is bad. Even though BQP/mpoly is a more natural class, BQP/poly follows the standard definition of advice as a class operator [KL82].

Contained in BQP/mpoly and contains BQP/log.

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BQP/mlog: BQP With Logarithmic-Size Deterministic Merlin-Like Advice

Same as BQP/mpoly except that the advice is O(log n) bits instead of a polynomial number.

Strictly contained in BQP/qlog [NY03].

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BQP/mpoly: BQP With Polynomial-Size Deterministic Merlin-Like Advice

The class of languages recognized by a syntactic BQP machine with deterministic polynomial advice that depends only on the input length, such that the output is correct with probability 2/3 when the advice is good.

Can also be defined as the class of problems solvable by a nonuniform family of polynomial-size quantum circuits, just as P/poly is the class solvable by a nonuniform family of polynomial-size classical circuits.

Referred to with a variety of other ad hoc names, including BQP/poly on occassion.

Contains BQP/qlog, and is contained in BQP/qpoly.

Does not contain ESPACE [NY03].

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BQP/qlog: BQP With Logarithmic-Size Quantum Advice

Same as BQP/mlog except that the advice is quantum instead of classical.

Strictly contains BQP/mlog [NY03].

Contained in BQP/mpoly.

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BQP/qpoly: BQP With Polynomial-Size Quantum Advice

The class of problems solvable by a BQP machine that receives a quantum state ψn as advice, which depends only on the input length n.

As with BQP/mpoly, the acceptance probability does not need to be bounded away from 1/2 if the machine is given bad advice. (Thus, we are discussing the class that [NY03] call BQP/*Qpoly.) Indeed, such a condition would make quantum advice unusable, by a continuity argument.

Does not contain EESPACE [NY03].

[AD14] showed that BQP/qpoly = YQP/poly.

There exists an oracle relative to which BQP/qpoly does not contain NP [Aar04b].

A classical oracle separation between BQP/qpoly and BQP/mpoly is presently unknown, but there is a quantum oracle separation [AK06]. An unrelativized separation is too much to hope for, since it would imply that PP is not contained in P/poly.

Contains BQP/mpoly.

Does not contain PP unless CH collapses [Aar06],[Yir24].

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BQTIME(f(n)): Bounded-Error Quantum f(n)-Time

Same as BQP, but with f(n)-time (for some constructible function f) rather than polynomial-time machines.

Defined in [BV97].

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DQC1: Deterministic Quantum Computing with 1 Clean Bit

The class of problems solvable by a BQP machine in which a single qubit is initialized to the '0' state, and the remaining qubits are initialized to the maximally mixed state.

We need to stipulate that there are no "strong measurements" -- intermediate measurements on which later operations are conditioned -- since otherwise we can do all of BQP by first initializing the computer to the all-0 state.

[ASV00] showed that if DQC1 = BQP, something other than gate-by-gate simulation will be needed to show this.

[SJ08] showed that approximating the Jones polynomial at a fifth root of unity for the trace closure of a braid is complete for DQC1.

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DQP: Dynamical Quantum Polynomial-Time

The class of decision problems solvable by a BQP machine with oracle access to a dynamical simulator. When given a polynomial-size quantum circuit, the simulator returns a sample from the distribution over "classical histories" induced by the circuit. The simulator can adversarially choose any history distribution that satisfies the axioms of "symmetry" and "locality" -- so that the DQP algorithm has to work for any distribution satisfying these axioms.

See [Aar05] for a full definition.

There it is also shown that SZK is contained in DQP.

Contains BQP, and is contained in EXP [Aar05].

There exists an oracle relative to which DQP does not contain NP [Aar05].

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EQP: Exact Quantum Polynomial-Time

The same as BQP, except that the quantum algorithm must return the correct answer with probability 1, and run in polynomial time with probability 1. Unlike bounded-error quantum computing, there is no theory of universal QTMs for exact quantum computing models. In the original definition in [BV97], each language in EQP is computed by a single QTM, equivalently to a uniform family of quantum circuits with a finite gate set K whose amplitudes can be computed in polynomial time. See EQPK. However, some results require an infinite gate set. The official definition here is that the gate set should be finite.

Without loss of generality, the amplitudes in the gate set K are algebraic numbers [ADH97].

There is an oracle that separates EQP from NP [BV97], indeed from Δ2P [GP01]. There is also an oracle relative to which EQP is not in ModpP where p is prime [GV02]. On the other hand, EQP is in LWPP [FR98].

P||NP[2k] is contained in EQP||NP[k], where "||NP[k]" denotes k nonadaptive oracle queries to NP (queries that cannot depend on the results of previous queries) [BD99].

See also ZBQP.

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FBQP: Function BQP

Has the same relation to BQP as FNP does to NP.

There exists an oracle relative to which PLS is not contained in FBQP [Aar03].

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MA: Merlin-Arthur

The class of decision problems solvable by a Merlin-Arthur protocol, which goes as follows. Merlin, who has unbounded computational resources, sends Arthur a polynomial-size purported proof that the answer to the problem is "yes." Arthur must verify the proof in BPP (i.e. probabilistic polynomial-time), so that

  1. If the answer is "yes," then there exists a proof such that Arthur accepts with probability at least 2/3.
  2. If the answer is "no," then for all proofs Arthur accepts with probability at most 1/3.

Defined in [Bab85].

An alternative definition requires that if the answer is "yes," then there exists a proof such that Arthur accepts with certainty. However, the definitions with one-sided and two-sided error can be shown to be equivalent (see [FGM+89]).

Contains NP and BPP (in fact also ∃BPP), and is contained in AM and in QMA.

Also contained in Σ2PΠ2P.

There exists an oracle relative to which BQP is not in MA [Wat00].

Equals NP under a derandomization assumption: if E requires exponentially-sized circuits, then PromiseBPP = PromiseP, implying that MA = NP [IW97].

Shown in [San07] that MA/1 (that is, MA with 1 bit of advice) does not have circuits of size for any . In the same paper, the result was used to show that MA/1 cannot be solved on more than a fraction of inputs having length by any circuit of size . Finally, it was shown that MA does not have arithmetic circuits of size .

See also: MAE, MAEXP, OMA.

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NISZKh: NISZK With Limited Help

The non-interactive analogue of SZKh.

Defined in [BG03], where the following was also shown:

The quantum lower bound for the set comparison problem in [Aar02] implies an oracle relative to which NISZKh is not in BQP.

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NP: Nondeterministic Polynomial-Time

The class of dashed hopes and idle dreams.

More formally: an "NP machine" is a nondeterministic polynomial-time Turing machine.

Then NP is the class of decision problems solvable by an NP machine such that

  1. If the answer is "yes," at least one computation path accepts.
  2. If the answer is "no," all computation paths reject.

Equivalently, NP is the class of decision problems such that, if the answer is "yes," then there is a proof of this fact, of length polynomial in the size of the input, that can be verified in P (i.e. by a deterministic polynomial-time algorithm). On the other hand, if the answer is "no," then the algorithm must declare invalid any purported proof that the answer is "yes."

For example, the SAT problem is to decide whether a given Boolean formula has any satisfying truth assignments. SAT is in NP, since a "yes" answer can be proved by just exhibiting a satisfying assignment.

A decision problem is NP-complete if (1) it is in NP, and (2) any problem in NP can be reduced to it (under some notion of reduction). The class of NP-complete problems is sometimes called NPC.

That NP-complete problems exist is immediate from the definition. The seminal result of Cook [Coo71], Karp [Kar72], and Levin [Lev73] is that many natural problems (that have nothing to do with Turing machines) are NP-complete.

The first such problem to be shown NP-complete was SAT [Coo71]. Other classic NP-complete problems include:

For many, many more NP-complete problems, see [GJ79].

There exists an oracle relative to which P and NP are unequal [BGS75]. Indeed, P and NP are unequal relative to a random oracle with probability 1 [BG81] (see [AFM01] for a novel take on this result). Though random oracle results are not always indicative about the unrelativized case [CCG+94].

There even exists an oracle relative to which the P versus NP problem is outside the usual axioms of set theory [HH76].

If we restrict to monotone classes, mP is strictly contained in mNP [Raz85].

Perhaps the most important insight anyone has had into P versus NP is to be found in [RR97]. There the authors show that no 'natural proof' can separate P from NP (or more precisely, place NP outside of P/poly), unless secure pseudorandom generators do not exist. A proof is 'natural' if it satisfies two conditions called constructivity and largeness; essentially all lower bound techniques known to date satisfy these conditions. To obtain unnatural proof techniques, some people suspect we need to relate P versus NP to heavy-duty 'traditional' mathematics, for instance algebraic geometry. See [MS02] (and the survey article [Reg02]) for a development of this point of view.

For more on P versus NP (circa 1992) see [Sip92]. For an opinion poll, see [Gas02]. P vs NP is a "Millenium Prize" problem [CMI00].

If P equals NP, then NP equals its complement coNP. Whether NP equals coNP is also open. NP and coNP can be extended to the polynomial hierarchy PH.

The set of decision problems in NP, but not in P or NPC, is sometimes called NPI. If P does not equal NP then NPI is nonempty [Lad75].

Probabilistic generalizations of NP include MA and AM. If NP is in coAM (or BPP) then PH collapses to Σ2P [BHZ87].

PH also collapses to Σ2P if NP is in P/poly [KL82].

There exist oracles relative to which NP is not in BQP [BBB+97].

An alternate characterization is NP = PCP(log n, O(1)) [ALM+98].

Also, [Fag74] showed that NP is precisely the class of decision problems reducible to a graph-theoretic property expressible in second-order existential logic. This leads to the subclass SNP.

It is known that if any NP-complete language is sparse (contains no more than a polynomial number of strings of length ), then P = NP. [BH08] improved this result, showing that if any language in NP has an NP-hard set of subexponential density, then coNP is contained in NP/poly and thus, by [Yap82], PH collapses to the third level.

NP is equal to SO-E, the second-order queries where the second-order quantifiers are only existantials.

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P: Polynomial-Time

The class that started it all.

The class of decision problems solvable in polynomial time by a Turing machine. (See also FP, for function problems.)

Defined in [Edm65], [Cob64], [Rab60], and other seminal early papers.

Contains some highly nontrivial problems, including linear programming [Kha79] and finding a maximum matching in a general graph [Edm65].

Contains the problem of testing whether an integer is prime [AKS02], an important result that improved on a proof requiring an assumption of the generalized Riemann hypothesis [Mil76].

A decision problem is P-complete if it is in P, and if every problem in P can be reduced to it in L (logarithmic space). The canonical P-complete problem is circuit evaluation: given a Boolean circuit and an input, decide what the circuit outputs when given the input.

Important subclasses of P include L, NL, NC, and SC.

P is contained in NP, but whether they're equal seemed to be an open problem when I last checked.

Efforts to generalize P resulted in BPP and BQP.

The nonuniform version is P/poly, the monotone version is mP, and versions over the real and complex number fields are PR and PC respectively.

In descriptive complexity, P can be defined by three different kind of formulae, FO(lfp) which is also FO()], and also as SO(Horn)

P queries are exactly the one that can be written in the While/cons languages.

P is the class of decision problems solvable by a (logspace) uniform family of polynomial-size Boolean circuits.

P can be computed by interactive protocols (see IP) where the verifier runs in log space (see L and BPL) [GKR15].

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PDQP: Product Dynamical Quantum Polynomial time

This class is a generalization of BQP where one is allowed to perform measuresments without collapsing the wavefunction.[ABFL14]

Unlike, BQP this is likely to be a not physically realizable class.

Contains SZK and thus contains graph isomorphism.

There is an oracle relative to which BQP is not equal to PDQP and an oracle relative to which NP is not contained in PDQP.

PDQP can perform unordered searches faster than BQP.

Compare DQP.

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PhP: Physical Polynomial-Time

Defined by Valiant [Val03] to be "the class of physically constructible polynomial resource computers" (characterizing what "can be computed in the physical world in practice"). There he says that PhP contains P and BPP, but that it is open whether PhP contains BQP, since no scalable quantum computing proposal has been demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt.

For what it's worth, the present zookeeper has more qualms about admitting DTIME(n1000) into PhP than BQTIME(n2). It is very possible that the total number of bits or bit tranisitions that can be witnessed by any one observer in the universe is finite. (Recent observations of the cosmological constant combined with plausible fundamental physics yields a bound of 10k with k in the low hundreds.) In practice, less than 1050 bits and less than 1080 bit transitions are available for human use. (This is combining the number of atoms in the Earth with the number of signals that they can exchange in a millenium.)

The present veterinarian concurs that PhP is an unhealthy animal, although it is valid to ask whether BQP is a realistic class.

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PostBQP: BQP With Postselection

A class inspired by the proverb, "if at first you don't succeed, try, try again."

Formally, the class of decision problems solvable by a BQP machine such that

Defined in [Aar05b], where it is also shown that PostBQP equals PP.

[Aar05b] also gives the following alternate characterizations of PostBQP (and therefore of PP):

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PP: Probabilistic Polynomial-Time

The class of decision problems solvable by an NP machine such that

  1. If the answer is 'yes' then at least 1/2 of computation paths accept.
  2. If the answer is 'no' then less than 1/2 of computation paths accept.

Defined in [Gil77].

PP is closed under union and intersection [BRS91] (this was an open problem for 14 years). More generally, PPP[log] = PP. Even more generally, PP is closed under polynomial-time truth-table reductions, or even k-round reductions for any constant k [FR96].

Contains PNP[log] [BHW89] and QMA (see [MW05]). However, there exists an oracle relative to which PP does not contain Δ2P [Bei94].

PH is in PPP [Tod89].

BPP [KST+89b] and even BQP [FR98] and YQP* [Yir24] are low for PP: i.e., PPBQP = PP.
APP is PP-low [Li93].

Equals PostBQP [Aar05b].

For a random oracle A, PPA is strictly contained in PSPACEA with probability 1 [ABF+94].

For any fixed k, there exists a language in PP that does not have circuits of size nk [Vin04b].
Indeed, there exists a language in PP that does not even have quantum circuits of size nk with quantum advice [Aar06] and [Yir24].

By contrast, there exists an oracle relative to which PP has linear-size circuits [Aar06].

PP can be generalized to the counting hierarchy CH.

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PPAD: Polynomial Parity Argument (Directed)

Defined in [Pap94b]; see also [BCE+95].

Same as PPA, except now the graph is directed, and we're asked to find either a source or a sink.

Contained in PPA and PPADS.

NASH, the problem of finding a Nash equilibrium in a normal form game of two or more players with specified utilities, is in PPAD [Pap94b], and proved to be complete for PPAD with four players in [DGP05], and shortly after extended to the case of three players [DP05] and independently [CD05].

There exists an oracle relative to which PPP is not contained in PPAD [BCE+95].There exists an oracle relative to which PPAD is not contained in BQP [Li11].

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PQP: Probabilistic Quantum Polynomial-Time

The class of decision problems solvable in polynomial time by a quantum Turing machine, with less than 1/2 probability of error.Similar to BQP in definition, but without bounded error.

Defined in [Wat09], where it shown to be equivalent to PP.

Equals PP and therefore PPBPP [KST+89b] as well as PostBQP [Aar05b].

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PromiseBQP: Promise-Problem BQP

Same as PromiseBPP, but for BQP instead of BPP.

If PromiseBQP = PromiseP then BQP/mpoly = P/poly.

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QAM: Quantum AM

The class of decision problems for which a "yes" answer can be verified by a public-coin quantum AM protocol, as follows. Arthur generates a uniformly random (classical) string and sends it to Merlin. Merlin responds with a polynomial-size quantum certificate, on which Arthur can perform any BQP operation. The completeness and soundness requirements are the same as for AM.

Defined by Marriott and Watrous [MW05].

Contains QMA and is contained in QIP[2] and BP•PP (and therefore PSPACE).

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QIP: Quantum IP

The class of decision problems such that a "yes" answer can be verified by a quantum interactive proof. Here the verifier is a BQP (i.e. quantum polynomial-time) algorithm, while the prover has unbounded computational resources (though cannot violate the linearity of quantum mechanics). The prover and verifier exchange a polynomial number of messages, which can be quantum states. Thus, the verifier's and prover's states may become entangled during the course of the protocol. Given the verifier's algorithm, we require that

  1. If the answer is "yes," then the prover can behave in such a way that the verifier accepts with probability at least 2/3.
  2. If the answer is "no," then however the prover behaves, the verifier rejects with probability at least 2/3.

Let QIP[k] be QIP where the prover and verifier are restricted to exchanging k messages (with the prover going last).

Defined in [Wat99], where it was also shown that PSPACE is in QIP[3].

Subsequently [KW00] showed that for all k>3, QIP[k] = QIP[3] = QIP.

QIP is contained in EXP [KW00].

QIP = IP = PSPACE [JJUW09]; thus quantum computing adds no power to single-prover interactive proofs.

QIP(1) is more commonly known as QMA.

See also: QIP[2], QSZK.

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QMA: Quantum MA

The class of decision problems such that a "yes" answer can be verified by a 1-message quantum interactive proof. That is, a BQP (i.e. quantum polynomial-time) verifier is given a quantum state (the "proof"). We require that

  1. If the answer is "yes," then there exists a state such that verifier accepts with probability at least 2/3.
  2. If the answer is "no," then for all states the verifier rejects with probability at least 2/3.

QMA = QIP(1).

Defined in [Wat00], where it is also shown that group non-membership is in QMA.

Based on this, [Wat00] gives an oracle relative to which MA is strictly contained in QMA.

Kitaev and Watrous (unpublished) showed QMA is contained in PP (see [MW05] for a proof). Combining that result with [Ver92], one can obtain an oracle relative to which AM is not in QMA.

Kitaev ([KSV02], see also [AN02]) showed that the 5-Local Hamiltonians Problem is QMA-complete. Subsequently, Kempe and Regev [KR03] showed that even 3-Local Hamiltonians is QMA-complete. A subsequent paper by Kempe, Kitaev, and Regev [KKR04], has hit rock bottom (assuming P does not equal QMA), by showing 2-local Hamiltonians QMA-complete.

Compare to NQP.

If QMA = PP then PP contains PH [Vya03]. This result uses the fact that QMA is contained in A0PP.

Approximating the ground state energy of a system composed of a line of quantum particles is QMA-complete [AGK07].

See also: QCMA, QMA/qpoly, QSZK, QMA(2), QMA-plus.

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QMAM: Quantum Merlin-Arthur-Merlin Public-Coin Interactive Proofs

The class of decision problems for which a "yes" answer can be verified by a public-coin quantum MAM protocol, as follows. Merlin sends a polynomial-size quantum state to Arthur. Arthur then flips some classical coins (in fact, he only has to flip one without loss of generality) and sends the outcome to Merlin. At this stage Arthur is not yet allowed to perform any quantum operations. Merlin then sends Arthur another quantum state. Finally, Arthur performs a BQP operation on both of the states simultaneously, and either accepts or rejects. The completeness and soundness requirements are the same as for AM. Also, Merlin's messages might be entangled.

Defined by Marriott and Watrous [MW05], who also showed that QMAM = QIP(3) = QIP.

Hence QMAM equals PSPACE.

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QNC: Quantum NC

The class of decision problems solvable by polylogarithmic-depth quantum circuits with bounded probability of error. (A uniformity condition may also be imposed.)

Has the same relation to NC as BQP does to P.

[CW00] showed that factoring is in ZPP with a QNC oracle.

Is incomparable with BPP as far as anyone knows.

See also: RNC.

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QPIP: Quantum Prover Interactive Proof

Like IP, but the prover is a BQP machine, not unbounded. The prover and verifier can only exchange classical information in their interaction. Shown to be equal to BQP in [Mah18].

Similarly, QPIPk is like QPIP, but the verifier is a BPP machine with access to a k qubit quantum computer, and the verifier and prover can exchange classical and quantum information.

Defined in [ABOE08], where they showed that BQP=QPIPc for some constant c.

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QRG: Quantum Refereed Games

Same as RG, except that now the verifier is a BQP machine, and can exchange polynomially many quantum messages with the competing provers.

The two provers are computationally unbounded, but must obey the laws of quantum mechanics. Also, we can assume without loss of generality that the provers share no entanglement, because adversaries gain no advantage by sharing information.

Defined in [Gut05], where it was also shown that QRG is contained in NEXPcoNEXP.

QRG trivially contains RG (and hence EXP), as well as SQG.

QRG is contained in EXP [GW07]. Hence QRG = RG = EXP and finding optimal strategies for zero-sum quantum games is no harder than finding optimal strategies for zero-sum classical games.

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QRG(1): One-turn Quantum Refereed Games

The class of problems for which there exists a BQP machine M such that:

In other words, it's the same as QRG(k) for , the class of problems that admit quantum interactive proofs with competing provers in which there's no communication from the verifier back to the provers. QRG(1) is the quantum version of RG(1).

Defined in [JW09], where it was shown that QRG(1) is contained in PSPACE .

QRG(1) trivially contains QMA (and indeed PQRG(1)).

QRG(1) is trivially contained in QRG(2) (and hence PSPACE).

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QSZK: Quantum Statistical Zero-Knowledge

A quantum analog of SZK (or more precisely HVSZK).

Arthur is a BQP (i.e. quantum) verifier who can exchange quantum messages with Merlin. So Arthur and Merlin's states may become entangled during the course of the protocol.

Arthur's "view" of his interaction with Merlin is taken to be the sequence of mixed states he has, over all steps of the protocol. The zero-knowledge requirement is that each of these states must have trace distance at most (say) 1/10 from a state that Arthur could prepare himself (in BQP), without help from Merlin. Arthur is assumed to be an honest verifier.

Defined in [Wat02], where the following was also shown:

Subsequently, [Wat09b] showed that honest-verifier and general-verifier quantum statistical zero-knowledge are equivalent.

There exists an oracle relative to which QSZK does not contain UPcoUP, and a random oracle relative to which QSZK does not contain UP [MW18].

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RBQP: Strict Quantum RP

The class of problems in NP whose witnesses are in FBQP. For example, the set of square-free numbers is in coRBQP using only the fact that factoring is in FBQP. (Even without a proof that the factors are prime, the factorization proves that there is a square divisor.)

Contains RP and ZBQP, and is contained in BQP and RQP. Defined here to clarify EQP; see also ZBQP.

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RQP: One-sided Error Extension of EQP

The class of questions that can be answered by a QTM that accepts with probability 0 when the true answer is no, and accepts with probability at least 1/2 when the true answer is yes. Since one of the probabilities has to vanish, RQP has the same technical caveats as EQP.

Contains ZQP and RBQP, and is contained in BQP.

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SZK: Statistical Zero Knowledge

The class of decision problems for which a "yes" answer can be verified by a statistical zero-knowledge proof protocol. In such an interactive proof(see IP), we have a probabilistic polynomial-time verifier, and a prover who has unbounded computational resources. By exchanging messages with the prover, the verifier must become convinced (with high probability) that the answer is "yes," without learning anything else about the problem (statistically).

What does that mean? For each choice of random coins, the verifier has a "view" of his entire interaction with prover, consisting of his random coins as well as all messages sent back and forth. Then the distribution over views resulting from interaction with the prover has to be statistically close to a distribution that the verifier could generate himself (in polynomial-time), without interacting with anyone. (Here "statistically close" means that, say, the trace distance is at most 1/10.)

The most famous example of such a protocol is for graph nonisomorphism. Given two graphs G and H, the verifier picks at random one of the graphs (each with probability 1/2), permutes its vertices randomly, sends the resulting graph to the prover, and asks, "Which graph did I start with, G or H?" If G and H are non-isomorphic, the prover can always answer correctly (since he can use exponential time), but if they're isomorphic, he can answer correctly with probability at most 1/2. Thus, if the prover always gives the correct answer, then the verifier becomes convinced the graphs are not isomorphic. On the other hand, the verifier already knew which graph (G or H) he started with, so he could simulate his entire view of the interaction himself, without the prover's help.

If that sounds like a complicated definition, well, it is. But it turns out that SZK has extremely nice properties. [Oka96] showed that:

Subsequently, [SV97] showed that SZK has a natural complete promise problem, called Statistical Difference (SD). Given two polynomial-size circuits, C0 and C1, let D0 and D1 be the distributions over their respective outputs when they're given as input a uniformly random n-bit string. We're promised that D0 and D1 have trace distance either at most 1/3 or at least 2/3; the problem is to decide which is the case.

Note: The constants 1/3 and 2/3 can be amplified to 2-poly(n) and 1-2-poly(n) respectively. But it is crucial that (2/3)2 > 1/3.

Another complete promise problem for SZK is Entropy Difference (ED) [GV99]. Here we're promised that either H(D0)>H(D1)+1 or H(D1)>H(D0)+1, where the distributions D0 and D1 are as above, and H denotes Shannon entropy. The problem is to determine which is the case.

If any hard-on-average language is in SZK, then one-way functions exist [Ost91].


See general zero-knowledge (ZK).

Contains PZK and NISZK, and is contained in AMcoAM, as well as CZK and QSZK.

There exists an oracle relative to which SZK is not in BQP [Aar02].

Contained in DQP [Aar02b].

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TreeBQP: BQP Restricted To Tree States

The class of languages accepted by a BQP machine subject to the constraint that at every time step t, the machine's state is exponentially close to a tree state -- that is, a state expressible by a polynomial-size tree of additions and tensor products (together with complex constants and |0> and |1> leaf nodes).

More formally, a uniform classical polynomial-time algorithm generates a sequence of gates g(1), ... ,g(p(n)). Each g(t) can be either be selected from some finite universal basis of unitary gates (the choice turns out not to matter), or can be a 1-qubit measurement. When we perform a measurement, the state evolves to one of two possible pure states, with the usual probabilities, rather than to a mixed state. We require that the final gate g(p(n)) is a measurement of the first qubit. If at least one intermediate state was more than distance 2-Ω(n) away from the nearest state of tree size at most p(n), then the outcome of the final measurement is chosen adversarially; otherwise it is given by the usual Born probabilities. The measurement must return 1 with probability at least 2/3 if the input is in the language, and with probability at most 1/3 otherwise.

Contains BPP, and is contained in BQP.

Defined in [Aar03b], where it was also shown that TreeBQP iscontained in the third level of PH, which might provide weak evidence thatTreeBQP does not equal BQP.

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YQP: Yaroslav BQP

Is to YPP as BQP is to BPP, and QMA is to MA. The machine is now a quantum computer and the advice is a quantum state |ψ_n>.

Contains BQP and YPP, and is contained in QMA and BQP/qpoly.

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YQP*: Yaroslav BQP star

Is to YQP as YP* is to YP [AD14].

Is contained in APP, and so is low for PP [Yir24].

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ZQP: Zero-Error Extension Of EQP

The class of questions that can be answered by a QTM that answers yes, no, or "maybe". If the correct answer is yes, then P[no] = 0, and vice-versa; and the probability of maybe is at most 1/2. Since some of the probabilities have to vanish, ZQP has the same technical caveats as EQP.

Defined independently in [BW03] and in [Nis02].

Contains EQP and ZBQP and is contained in BQP. Equals RQP ∩ coRQP. There is an oracle such that ZQPZQP is larger than ZQP [BW03]; c.f. with ZBQP.

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