English

Covariant Approximate Quantum Codes for Protected Analog Computation

Quantum Physics 2026-07-08 v1

Abstract

Quantum error correction compatible with continuous symmetries is a fundamental problem in quantum information and a possible route to robust analog quantum simulation. Because the Eastin-Knill theorem forbids exact codes with continuous transversal symmetries, we construct explicit SU(d)SU(d)-covariant approximate codes that exploit permutation symmetry to spread logical information uniformly across all physical subsystems. For one-, two-, and three-qudit erasures at known locations, we prove worst-case purified-distance scaling Θ(1/N)\Theta(1/N), matching approximate Eastin-Knill lower bounds up to constants, and we extend the reduced-state analysis to general flagged local noise. For single-qudit erasure, we construct an explicit near-optimal decoder from the Petz recovery map. We then use these codes as building blocks for encoded analog dynamics. Symmetry-preserving Hamiltonians generate block-structured dynamical Lie algebras implementable transversally, while controlled symmetry-breaking terms serve as non-transversal resources for universal dynamics. These results provide explicit non-Abelian covariant codes and a framework for robust analog quantum simulation.

Cite

@article{arxiv.2607.07607,
  title  = {Covariant Approximate Quantum Codes for Protected Analog Computation},
  author = {Mariia Elovenkova and Hong-Ye Hu and Susanne F. Yelin},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2607.07607},
  year   = {2026}
}