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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 145 records · Page 8
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2022

Information-Theoretic Exploration of Multivariate Time-Varying Image Databases

Modern scientific simulations produce very large datasets, making interactive exploration of such data computationally prohibitive. An increasingly common data reduction technique is to store visualizations and other data extracts in a database. The Cinema project is one such approach, storing visualizations in an image database for post hoc exploration and interactive image-based analysis. This work focuses on developing efficient algorithms that can quantify various types of multivariate dependencies existing within multi-variable datasets. It applies specific mutual information measures for the quantification of salient regions from multivariate image data. Here, using such information measures, the opacity of the images is modulated so that the salient regions are automatically highlighted and the domain scientists can interactively explore the most relevant regions for scientific discovery.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2020

Quantum channel capacities

A brief general review is presented of the theory of information transmission capacities of quantum communication channels, which is a development of the classical Shannon theory. Unlike a classical communication channel, a quantum channel is characterised by a whole set of different capacities, which depend on the type of transmitted information (classical or quantum) and on additional resources used during transmission. The main characteristics of a quantum channel are considered: classical capacity, capacity assisted by entanglement between the channel input and output, quantum capacity and secret classical capacity. The unique role of the quantum entanglement property, which manifests itself, in particular, in a nonclassical phenomenon of capacity superadditivity, is emphasised. (paper)

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2024

Thermal Bekenstein-Hawking entropy from the worldsheet

We define and compute the leading sphere diagram contribution to the entropy of the BTZ black hole supported by Kalb-Ramond flux in bosonic string theory. In a winding condensate description, integrating exactly over the constant mode for the radial direction of AdS 3 reduces the problem to one of the correlation functions of winding operators in the free theory. The volume of the residual PSL(2,ℂ) gauge group of the sphere is canceled by the action of conformal transformations on the winding interaction insertions. We formulate a precise version of the replica trick in terms of (infinitesimally) non-integer winding condensates to produce the entropy of the BTZ black hole. The resulting entropy can be calculated from the one-point function of a non-local operator on the worldsheet.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Quantum computing universal thermalization dynamics in a (2 + 1)D Lattice Gauge Theory

Simulating non-equilibrium phenomena in strongly-interacting quantum many-body systems, including thermalization, is a promising application of near-term and future quantum computation. By performing experiments on a digital quantum computer consisting of fully-connected optically-controlled trapped ions, we study the role of entanglement in the thermalization dynamics of a Z 2 lattice gauge theory in 2+1 spacetime dimensions. Using randomized-measurement protocols, we efficiently learn a classical approximation of non-equilibrium states that yields the gap-ratio distribution and the spectral form factor of the entanglement Hamiltonian. These observables exhibit universal early-time signals for quantum chaos, a prerequisite for thermalization. Our work, therefore, establishes quantum computers as robust tools for studying universal features of thermalization in complex many-body systems, including in gauge theories.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2024

Modeling stochastic fluctuations in relativistic kinetic theory

Using the information current, we develop a Lorentz-covariant framework for modeling equilibrium fluctuations in relativistic kinetic theory in the grand-canonical ensemble. The resulting stochastic theory is proven to be causal and covariantly stable, and its predictions do not depend on the choice of spacetime foliation used to define the grand-canonical probabilities. As expected, in a box containing N > 5 particles, Boltzmann’s molecular chaos postulate is broken with (almost exact) probability N -1/2 , leading to a breakdown of the Boltzmann equation in small systems. Here, we also verify that, in ultrarelativistic gases, transient hydrodynamics already accounts for at least 80% of the equilibrium fluctuations of the stress-energy tensor at a given time. Finally, we compute the correlators at nonequal times for two selected collision kernels: that of a chemically active diluted solution, and that of ultrarelativistic scalar particles self-interacting via a quartic potential. For the former, we compute the density-density correlators analytically in real space, and dehydrodynamization of the stochastic theory is proven to occur whenever the mean free path diverges at high energy.

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2025

Bounding entanglement entropy with Clifford double cosets

Following on our previous work studying the orbits of quantum states under Clifford circuits via reachability graphs, we introduce contracted graphs whose vertices represent classes of quantum states with the same entropy vector. These contracted graphs represent the double cosets of the Clifford group, where the left cosets are built from the stabilizer subgroup of the starting state and the right cosets are built from the entropy-preserving operators. We study contracted graphs for stabilizer states, as well as 𝑊 states and Dicke states, discussing how the diameter of a state's contracted graph constrains the entropic diversity of its two-qubit Clifford orbit. We derive an upper bound on the number of entropy vectors that can be generated using any 𝑛-qubit Clifford circuit, for any quantum state. Here, we speculate on the holographic implications for the relative proximity of gravitational duals of states within the same Clifford orbit. Although we concentrate on how entropy evolves under the Clifford group, our double-coset formalism, and thus the contracted graph picture, is extendable to generic gate sets and generic state properties.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2024

Maximum Entropy Principle in Deep Thermalization and in Hilbert-Space Ergodicity

We report universal statistical properties displayed by ensembles of pure states that naturally emerge in quantum many-body systems. Specifically, two classes of state ensembles are considered: those formed by (i) the temporal trajectory of a quantum state under unitary evolution or (ii) the quantum states of small subsystems obtained by partial, local projective measurements performed on their complements. These cases, respectively, exemplify the phenomena of “Hilbert-space ergodicity” and “deep thermalization.” In both cases, the resultant ensembles are defined by a simple principle: The distributions of pure states have maximum entropy, subject to constraints such as energy conservation, and effective constraints imposed by thermalization. We present and numerically verify quantifiable signatures of this principle by deriving explicit formulas for all statistical moments of the ensembles, proving the necessary and sufficient conditions for such universality under widely accepted assumptions, and describing their measurable consequences in experiments. We further discuss information-theoretic implications of the universality: Our ensembles have maximal information content while being maximally difficult to interrogate, establishing that generic quantum state ensembles that occur in nature hide (scramble) information as strongly as possible. Our results generalize the notions of Hilbert-space ergodicity to time-independent Hamiltonian dynamics and deep thermalization from infinite to finite effective temperature. Our work presents new perspectives to characterize and understand universal behaviors of quantum dynamics using statistical and information-theoretic tools.

Eigenstate thermalization↗
DOE OSTI2022

Entropic lens on stabilizer states

The n-qubit stabilizer states are those left invariant by a 2 n -element subset of the Pauli group. The Clifford group is the group of unitaries which take stabilizer states to stabilizer states; a physically motivated generating set, the Hadamard, phase, and controlled-not (cnot) gates which comprise the Clifford gates, impose a graph structure on the set of stabilizers. We explicitly construct these structures, the “reachability graphs,” at n ≤ 5. When we consider only a subset of the Clifford gates, the reachability graphs separate into multiple, often complicated, connected components. Seeking an understanding of the entropic structure of the stabilizer states, which is ultimately built up by cnot gate applications on two qubits, we are motivated to consider the restricted subgraphs built from the Hadamard and cnot gates acting on only two of the n qubits. We show how the two subgraphs already present at two qubits are embedded into more complicated subgraphs at three and four qubits. We argue that no additional types of subgraph appear beyond four qubits, but that the entropic structures within the subgraphs can grow progressively more complicated as the qubit number increases. Starting at four qubits, some of the stabilizer states have entropy vectors which are not allowed by holographic entropy inequalities. Here, we comment on the nature of the transition between holographic and nonholographic states within the stabilizer reachability graphs.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2022

The role of information structures in game-theoretic multi-agent learning

Multi-agent learning (MAL) studies how agents learn to behave optimally and adaptively from their experience when interacting with other agents in dynamic environments. The outcome of a MAL process is jointly determined by all agents’ decision-making. Hence, each agent needs to think strategically about others’ sequential moves, when planning future actions. The strategic interactions among agents makes MAL go beyond the direct extension of single-agent learning to multiple agents. With the strategic thinking, each agent aims to build a subjective model of others decision-making using its observations. Such modeling is directly influenced by agents’ perception during the learning process, which is called the information structure of the agent’s learning. As it determines the input to MAL processes, information structures play a significant role in the learning mechanisms of the agents. This review creates a taxonomy of MAL and establishes a unified and systematic way to understand MAL from the perspective of information structures. Here we define three fundamental components of MAL: the information structure (i.e., what the agent can observe), the belief generation (i.e., how the agent forms a belief about others based on the observations), as well as the policy generation (i.e., how the agent generates its policy based on its belief). In addition, this taxonomy enables the classification of a wide range of state-of-the-art algorithms into four categories based on the belief-generation mechanisms of the opponents, including stationary, conjectured, calibrated, and sophisticated opponents. We introduce Value of Information (VoI) as a metric to quantify the impact of different information structures on MAL. Finally, we discuss the strengths and limitations of algorithms from different categories and point to promising avenues of future research.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2023

Say where you sample: Increasing site selection transparency in urban ecology

Urban ecological studies have the potential to extend our understanding of socio-ecological systems beyond that of an individual city or region. Cross-comparative empirical work and synthesis are imperative to develop a general urban ecological theory. This can be achieved only if studies are replicable and generalizable. Transparency in methods reporting facilitates generalizability and replicability by documenting the decisions scientists make during the various steps of research design; this is particularly true for sampling design and selection because of their impact on both internal and external validity and the potential to unintentionally introduce bias. Three interdependent aspects of sample design are study sample selection (e.g., specific organisms, soils, or water), sample specification (measurement of specific variable of interest), and site selection (locations sampled). Of these, documentation of site selection—the where component of sample design—is underrepresented in the urban ecology literature. Using a stratified random sample of 158 papers from 12 major urban ecology journals, we investigated how researchers selected study sites in urban ecosystems and evaluated whether their site selection methods were transparent. We extracted data from these papers using a 50-question, theory-based questionnaire and a multiple-reviewer approach. Our sample represented almost 45 years of urban ecology research across 40 different countries. We found that more than 80% of the papers read were not transparent in their site selection methodology. We do not believe site selection methods are replicable for 70% of the papers read. Key weaknesses include incomplete descriptions of populations and sampling frames, urban gradients, sample selection methods, and property access. Low transparency in reporting the where methodology limits urban ecologists’ ability to assess the internal and external validity of studies’ findings and to replicate published studies; it also limits the generalizability of existing studies. The challenges of low transparency are particularly relevant in urban ecology, a field where standard protocols for site selection and delineation are still being developed. These limitations interfere with the fields’ ability to build theory and inform policy. We conclude by offering a set of recommendations to increase transparency, replicability, and generalizability.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2024

A principle of maximum ignorance for semiclassical gravity

The principle of maximum ignorance posits that the coarse-grained description of a system is maximally agnostic about its underlying microscopic structure. We briefly review this principle for random matrix theory and for the eigenstate thermalization hypothesis. We then apply this principle in holography to construct ensembles of random mixed states. This leads to an ensemble of microstates which models our microscopic ignorance, and which on average reproduces the effective semiclassical physics of a given bulk state. We call this ensemble the state-averaging ansatz. The output of our model is a prediction for semiclassical contributions to variances and higher statistical moments over the ensemble of microstates. The statistical moments provide coarse-grained — yet gravitationally non-perturbative — information about the microstructure of the individual states of the ensemble. We show that these contributions exactly match the on-shell action of known wormhole configurations of the gravitational path integral. These results strengthen the view that wormholes simply parametrize the ignorance of the microstructure of a fundamental state, given a fixed semiclassical bulk description.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2025

Entanglement properties of SU(2) gauge theory

Understanding how isolated quantum systems thermalize is central to both fundamental physics and the development of quantum technologies. In this Perspective, we present recent and new results on thermalization in nonabelian gauge theory from exact real-time simulations of two-dimensional lattice models. We discuss tests of the eigenstate thermalization hypothesis, entanglement entropy dynamics, the absence of persistent non-thermal states, spectral signatures, and measures of quantum complexity. Our new results include a two-step thermalization process in localized regions and the role of higher gauge field representations. These findings suggest that thermalization in gauge theories may offer a test case for quantum advantage.

information theory and computation↗
DOE OSTI2020

Machine learning and serving of discrete field theories

A method for machine learning and serving of discrete field theories in physics is developed. The learning algorithm trains a discrete field theory from a set of observational data on a spacetime lattice, and the serving algorithm uses the learned discrete field theory to predict new observations of the field for new boundary and initial conditions. The approach of learning discrete field theories overcomes the difficulties associated with learning continuous theories by artificial intelligence. The serving algorithm of discrete field theories belongs to the family of structure-preserving geometric algorithms, which have been proven to be superior to the conventional algorithms based on discretization of differential equations. The effectiveness of the method and algorithms developed is demonstrated using the examples of nonlinear oscillations and the Kepler problem. In particular, the learning algorithm learns a discrete field theory from a set of data of planetary orbits similar to what Kepler inherited from Tycho Brahe in 1601, and the serving algorithm correctly predicts other planetary orbits, including parabolic and hyperbolic escaping orbits, of the solar system without learning or knowing Newton’s laws of motion and universal gravitation. The proposed algorithms are expected to be applicable when the effects of special relativity and general relativity are important.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2022

Model-Free Measurement of Local Entropy Production and Extractable Work in Active Matter

Time-reversal symmetry breaking and entropy production are universal features of nonequilibrium phenomena. Despite its importance in the physics of active and living systems, the entropy production of systems with many degrees of freedom has remained of little practical significance because the high dimensionality of their state space makes it difficult to measure. Here, in this work, we introduce a local measure of entropy production and a numerical protocol to estimate it. We establish a connection between the entropy production and extractability of work in a given region of the system and show how this quantity depends crucially on the degrees of freedom being tracked. We validate our approach in theory, simulation, and experiments by considering systems of active Brownian particles undergoing motility-induced phase separation, as well as active Brownian particles and E.coli in a rectifying device in which the time-reversal asymmetry of the particle dynamics couples to spatial asymmetry to reveal its effects on a macroscopic scale.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2022

Report of the Snowmass 2021 Theory Frontier Topical Group on Quantum Information Science

We summarize current and future applications of quantum information science to theoretical high energy physics. Three main themes are identified and discussed; quantum simulation, quantum sensors and formal aspects of the connection between quantum information and gravity. Within these themes, there are important research questions and opportunities to address them in the years and decades ahead. Efforts in developing a diverse quantum workforce are also discussed. This work summarizes the subtopical area Quantum Information for High Energy Physics TF10 which forms part of the Theory Frontier report for the Snowmass 2021 planning process.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Zero and Finite Temperature Quantum Simulations Powered by Quantum Magic

We introduce a quantum information theory-inspired method to improve the characterization of many-body Hamiltonians on near-term quantum devices. We design a new class of similarity transformations that, when applied as a preprocessing step, can substantially simplify a Hamiltonian for subsequent analysis on quantum hardware. By design, these transformations can be identified and applied efficiently using purely classical resources. In practice, these transformations allow us to shorten requisite physical circuit-depths, overcoming constraints imposed by imperfect near-term hardware. Importantly, the quality of our transformations is t u n a b l e : we define a 'ladder' of transformations that yields increasingly simple Hamiltonians at the cost of more classical computation. Using quantum chemistry as a benchmark application, we demonstrate that our protocol leads to significant performance improvements for zero and finite temperature free energy calculations on both digital and analog quantum hardware. Specifically, our energy estimates not only outperform traditional Hartree-Fock solutions, but this performance gap also consistently widens as we tune up the quality of our transformations. In short, our quantum information-based approach opens promising new pathways to realizing useful and feasible quantum chemistry algorithms on near-term hardware.

Physics↗