Discrimination of unitary transformations in the Deutsch-Jozsa algorithm

We describe a general framework for regarding oracle-assisted quantum algorithms as tools for discriminating between unitary transformations. We apply this to the Deutsch-Jozsa problem and derive all possible quantum algorithms which solve the problem with certainty using oracle unitaries in a particular form. We also use this to show that any quantum algorithm that solves the Deutsch-Jozsa problem starting with a quantum system in a particular class of initial, thermal equilibrium-based states of the type encountered in solution state NMR can only succeed with greater probability than a classical algorithm when the problem size exceeds $n \sim 10^5.$