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Complete quantum teleportation using nuclear magnetic resonance

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Abstract

Quantum-mechanical systems have information processing capabilities1,2 that are not possible with classical devices. One example is quantum teleportation3, in which the quantum state of a system is transported from one location to another without moving through the intervening space. But although partial implementations4,5 of quantum teleportation over macroscopic distances have been achieved using optical systems, the final stage of the teleportation procedure — which allows the complete recovery of the original state — was omitted. Here we report an experimental implementation of full quantum teleportation over interatomic distances using liquid-state nuclear magnetic resonance. We achieve teleportation of the quantum state of a carbon nucleus to a hydrogen nucleus in molecules of trichloroethylene, by exploiting natural phase decoherence of the carbon nuclei. Such a teleportation scheme may be used as a subroutine in larger quantum computations, or for quantum communication.

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Figure 1: Schematic circuits for the quantum teleportation experiment (a) and the control experiment (b).
Figure 2: Entanglement fidelity (a measure of how well quantum information is preserved) plotted as a function of decoherence delay.

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Acknowledgements

We thank D. Cory, C. Jarzynski, J. Ye and W. Zurek for discussions, the Stable Isotope Laboratory at Los Alamos for use of their facility, and the National Security Agency and Office of Naval Research for support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Theoretical Astrophysics, T-6, MS B-288, Los Alamos, 87545, New Mexico, USA

    M. A. Nielsen & R. Laflamme

  2. Computer Research and Applications CIC-3, MS B-265, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, 87545, New Mexico, USA

    E. Knill

  3. Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, 87131-1131, New Mexico, USA

    M. A. Nielsen

Authors
  1. M. A. Nielsen
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  2. E. Knill
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  3. R. Laflamme
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Correspondence to M. A. Nielsen.

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Nielsen, M., Knill, E. & Laflamme, R. Complete quantum teleportation using nuclear magnetic resonance. Nature 396, 52–55 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1038/23891

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