Coherence and contextuality as quantum resources
Abstract
In this thesis, we explore the intersection of two fundamental subfields of quantum information theory: quantum coherence and contextuality. Despite their apparent differences, both areas address key issues relevant to the foundations and applications of quantum theory. By developing a novel graph-theoretic approach, extending a framework recently introduced by Galv\~ao and Brod (Phys. Rev. A 101, 062110, 2020), we establish a formal connection between inequality-based witnesses of quantum coherence and noncontextuality inequalities. Our key contributions include: the development of a graph-theoretic framework for generating coherence and contextuality witnesses; a formal mapping between the inequalities that follows from the work by Galv\~ao and Brod to existing noncontextuality inequalities; the conceptualization of a relational form of quantum coherence; a proof of contextual advantage for the task of quantum interrogation; and the discovery of an infinite family of coherence witnesses that also require quantum states in Hilbert spaces of specific dimensions.
Cite
@article{arxiv.2511.16785,
title = {Coherence and contextuality as quantum resources},
author = {Rafael Wagner},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2511.16785},
year = {2025}
}
Comments
(Ph.D.) thesis, University of Minho, MAP-fis