Q# as a Quantum Algorithmic Language
Programming Languages
2023-11-16 v2 Emerging Technologies
Logic in Computer Science
Quantum Physics
Abstract
Q# is a standalone domain-specific programming language from Microsoft for writing and running quantum programs. Like most industrial languages, it was designed without a formal specification, which can naturally lead to ambiguity in its interpretation. We aim to provide a formal language definition for Q#, placing the language on a solid mathematical foundation and enabling further evolution of its design and type system. This paper presents -Q#, an idealized version of Q# that illustrates how we may view Q# as a quantum Algol (algorithmic language). We show the safety properties enforced by -Q#'s type system and present its equational semantics based on a fully complete algebraic theory by Staton.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.2206.03532,
title = {Q# as a Quantum Algorithmic Language},
author = {Kartik Singhal and Kesha Hietala and Sarah Marshall and Robert Rand},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2206.03532},
year = {2023}
}
Comments
In Proceedings QPL 2022, arXiv:2311.08375