Applying machine learning (ML) (including deep learning) methods to the study of quantum systems is an emergent area of physics research. A basic example of this is quantum state tomography, where a quantum state is learned from measurement.[1] Other examples include learning Hamiltonians,[2][3], detecting phase transition in spin-systems even when not trained on physical configurations near criticality[4][5], learning quantum phase transitions,[6][7] and automatically generating new quantum experiments.[8][9][10][11] ML is effective at processing large amounts of experimental or calculated data in order to characterize an unknown quantum system, making its application useful in contexts including quantum information theory, quantum technology development, and computational materials design. In this context, for example, it can be used as a tool to interpolate pre-calculated interatomic potentials,[12] or directly solving the Schrödinger equation with a variational method.[13]
The ability to experimentally control and prepare increasingly complex quantum systems brings with it a growing need to turn large and noisy data sets into meaningful information. This is a problem that has already been studied extensively in the classical setting, and consequently, many existing machine learning techniques can be naturally adapted to more efficiently address experimentally relevant problems. For example, Bayesian methods and concepts of algorithmic learning can be fruitfully applied to tackle quantum state classification,[14] Hamiltonian learning,[15] and the characterization of an unknown unitary transformation.[16][17] Other problems that have been addressed with this approach are given in the following list:
Identifying an accurate model for the dynamics of a quantum system, through the reconstruction of the Hamiltonian;[18][19][20]
Learning unknown unitary transformations and measurements;[16][17]
Engineering of quantum gates from qubit networks with pairwise interactions, using time dependent[25] or independent[26] Hamiltonians.
Improving the extraction accuracy of physical observables from absorption images of ultracold atoms (degenerate Fermi gas), by the generation of an ideal reference frame.[27]
Calculated and noise-free data
Quantum machine learning can also be applied to dramatically accelerate the prediction of quantum properties of molecules and materials.[28] This can be helpful for the computational design of new molecules or materials. Some examples include
Variational circuits are a family of algorithms which utilize training based on circuit parameters and an objective function.[35] Variational circuits are generally composed of a classical device communicating input parameters (random or pre-trained parameters) into a quantum device, along with a classical mathematical optimization function. These circuits are very heavily dependent on the architecture of the proposed quantum device because parameter adjustments are adjusted based solely on the classical components within the device.[36] Though the application is considerably infantile in the field of quantum machine learning, it has incredibly high promise for more efficiently generating efficient optimization functions.
Sign problem
Machine learning techniques can be used to find a better manifold of integration for path integrals in order to avoid the sign problem.[37]
Physics informed neural networks have been used to solve partial differential equations in both forward and inverse problems in a data driven manner.[38] One example is the reconstructing fluid flow governed by the Navier-Stokes equations. Using physics informed neural networks does not require the often expensive mesh generation that conventional CFD methods rely on.[39][40] It is evident that geometric and physical constraints have a synergistic effect on neural PDE surrogates, thereby enhancing their efficacy in predicting stable and super long rollouts.[41]
Illustration of how an AI learns the basic fundamental physical concept of 'unchangeableness'[42]
A deep learning system was reported to learn intuitive physics from visual data (of virtual 3D environments) based on an unpublished approach inspired by studies of visual cognition in infants.[43][42] Other researchers have developed a machine learning algorithm that could discover sets of basic variables of various physical systems and predict the systems' future dynamics from video recordings of their behavior.[44][45] In the future, it may be possible that such can be used to automate the discovery of physical laws of complex systems.[44] Beyond discovery and prediction, "blank slate"-type of learning of fundamental aspects of the physical world may have further applications such as improving adaptive and broad artificial general intelligence.[additional citation(s) needed] In specific, prior machine learning models were "highly specialised and lack a general understanding of the world".[43]
QML algorithms use qubits and quantum operations to try to improve the space and time complexity of classical machine learning algorithms.[52] Hybrid QML methods involve both classical and quantum processing, where computationally difficult subroutines are outsourced to a quantum device.[53][54][55] These routines can be more complex in nature and executed faster on a quantum computer.[13] Furthermore, quantum algorithms can be used to analyze quantum states instead of classical data.[56][57]
The term "quantum machine learning" is sometimes used to refer classical machine learning methods applied to data generated from quantum experiments (i.e. machine learning of quantum systems), such as learning the phase transitions of a quantum system[58][59][60][61] or creating new quantum experiments.[8][9][62]
QML also extends to a branch of research that explores methodological and structural similarities between certain physical systems and learning systems, in particular neural networks. For example, some mathematical and numerical techniques from quantum physics are applicable to classical deep learning and vice versa.[63][64][65]
Furthermore, researchers investigate more abstract notions of learning theory with respect to quantum information, sometimes referred to as "quantum learning theory".[66][67]
↑Cao, Chenfeng; Hou, Shi-Yao; Cao, Ningping; Zeng, Bei (2020-02-10). "Supervised learning in Hamiltonian reconstruction from local measurements on eigenstates" (in en). Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter33 (6): 064002. doi:10.1088/1361-648x/abc4cf. ISSN0953-8984. PMID33105109.
↑Abuali, Ahmed; Clarke, David A.; Hjorth-Jensen, Morten; Konstantinidis, Ioannis; Ratti, Claudia; Yang, Jianyi (2026). "Detecting the 3D Ising model phase transition with a ground-state-trained autoencoder". arXiv:2603.20157 [cond-mat.stat-mech].
↑Broecker, Peter; Assaad, Fakher F.; Trebst, Simon (2017-07-03). "Quantum phase recognition via unsupervised machine learning". arXiv:1707.00663 [cond-mat.str-el].
↑ 13.013.113.213.3Carleo, Giuseppe; Troyer, Matthias (2017-02-09). "Solving the quantum many-body problem with artificial neural networks". Science355 (6325): 602–606. doi:10.1126/science.aag2302. PMID28183973. Bibcode: 2017Sci...355..602C.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":5" defined multiple times with different content
↑Raissi, M.; Perdikaris, P.; Karniadakis, G. E. (2019-02-01). "Physics-informed neural networks: A deep learning framework for solving forward and inverse problems involving nonlinear partial differential equations" (in en). Journal of Computational Physics378: 686–707. doi:10.1016/j.jcp.2018.10.045. ISSN0021-9991. Bibcode: 2019JCoPh.378..686R.
↑Wiebe, Nathan; Kapoor, Ashish; Svore, Krysta (2014). "Quantum Algorithms for Nearest-Neighbor Methods for Supervised and Unsupervised Learning". Quantum Information & Computation15 (3): 0318–0358.
↑Lloyd, Seth; Mohseni, Masoud; Rebentrost, Patrick (2013). "Quantum algorithms for supervised and unsupervised machine learning". arXiv:1307.0411 [quant-ph].
↑Yoo, Seokwon; Bang, Jeongho; Lee, Changhyoup; Lee, Jinhyoung (2014). "A quantum speedup in machine learning: Finding a N-bit Boolean function for a classification". New Journal of Physics16 (10). doi:10.1088/1367-2630/16/10/103014. Bibcode: 2014NJPh...16j3014Y.
↑Abuali, Ahmed; Clarke, David A.; Hjorth-Jensen, Morten; Konstantinidis, Ioannis; Ratti, Claudia; Yang, Jianyi (2026). "Detecting the 3D Ising model phase transition with a ground-state-trained autoencoder". arXiv:2603.20157 [cond-mat.stat-mech].
↑Huggins, William; Patel, Piyush; Whaley, K. Birgitta; Stoudenmire, E. Miles (2018-03-30). "Towards Quantum Machine Learning with Tensor Networks". Quantum Science and Technology4 (2): 024001. doi:10.1088/2058-9565/aaea94.