8484 2,
8585 None,
8686 'extending-the-expressions'),
87+ ('Density Matrices', 2, None, 'density-matrices'),
8788 ('Density matrices/operators',
8889 2,
8990 None,
9293 2,
9394 None,
9495 'properties-of-density-matrices'),
96+ ('Important properties of the density matrix',
97+ 2,
98+ None,
99+ 'important-properties-of-the-density-matrix'),
100+ ('More on the density matrix',
101+ 2,
102+ None,
103+ 'more-on-the-density-matrix'),
95104 ('First entanglement encounter, two qubit system',
96105 2,
97106 None,
108117 ('Examples of entanglement', 2, None, 'examples-of-entanglement'),
109118 ('Ground state of helium', 2, None, 'ground-state-of-helium'),
110119 ('Maximally entangled', 2, None, 'maximally-entangled'),
120+ ('Density matrices in more detail',
121+ 2,
122+ None,
123+ 'density-matrices-in-more-detail'),
111124 ('Second exercise set', 2, None, 'second-exercise-set'),
112125 ('Ex1: One-qubit basis and Pauli matrices',
113126 2,
130143 2,
131144 None,
132145 'ex6-reduced-density-operators-ii'),
133- ('The next lecture, February 5, 2025 ',
146+ ('The next lecture, February 4, 2026 ',
134147 2,
135148 None,
136- 'the-next-lecture-february-5-2025 ')]}
149+ 'the-next-lecture-february-4-2026 ')]}
137150end of tocinfo -->
138151
139152< body >
198211 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#taking-the-trace " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Taking the trace</ a > </ li >
199212 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#outcome-probability " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Outcome probability</ a > </ li >
200213 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#extending-the-expressions " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Extending the expressions</ a > </ li >
214+ <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#density-matrices " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Density Matrices</ a > </ li >
201215 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#density-matrices-operators " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Density matrices/operators</ a > </ li >
202216 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#properties-of-density-matrices " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Properties of density matrices</ a > </ li >
217+ <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#important-properties-of-the-density-matrix " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Important properties of the density matrix</ a > </ li >
218+ <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#more-on-the-density-matrix " style ="font-size: 80%; "> More on the density matrix</ a > </ li >
203219 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#first-entanglement-encounter-two-qubit-system " style ="font-size: 80%; "> First entanglement encounter, two qubit system</ a > </ li >
204220 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#computational-basis " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Computational basis</ a > </ li >
205221 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#bell-states " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Bell states</ a > </ li >
213229 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#examples-of-entanglement " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Examples of entanglement</ a > </ li >
214230 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#ground-state-of-helium " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Ground state of helium</ a > </ li >
215231 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#maximally-entangled " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Maximally entangled</ a > </ li >
232+ <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#density-matrices-in-more-detail " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Density matrices in more detail</ a > </ li >
216233 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#second-exercise-set " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Second exercise set</ a > </ li >
217234 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#ex1-one-qubit-basis-and-pauli-matrices " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Ex1: One-qubit basis and Pauli matrices</ a > </ li >
218235 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#ex2-hadamard-and-phase-gates " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Ex2: Hadamard and Phase gates</ a > </ li >
219236 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#ex3-traces-of-operators " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Ex3: Traces of operators</ a > </ li >
220237 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#ex4-exponentiated-operators " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Ex4: Exponentiated operators</ a > </ li >
221238 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#ex5-reduced-density-operators-i " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Ex5: Reduced density operators I</ a > </ li >
222239 <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#ex6-reduced-density-operators-ii " style ="font-size: 80%; "> Ex6: Reduced density operators II</ a > </ li >
223- <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#the-next-lecture-february-5-2025 " style ="font-size: 80%; "> The next lecture, February 5, 2025 </ a > </ li >
240+ <!-- navigation toc: --> < li > < a href ="#the-next-lecture-february-4-2026 " style ="font-size: 80%; "> The next lecture, February 4, 2026 </ a > </ li >
224241
225242 </ ul >
226243 </ li >
@@ -264,7 +281,6 @@ <h2 id="summary-from-last-week-and-plans-for-this-week" class="anchor">Summary f
264281< li > introduced the inner product and showed how to calculate it in an orthonormal basis</ li >
265282< li > introduced outer products and projection operators</ li >
266283< li > introduced tensor products and showed how to construct state vectors for multiple qubits</ li >
267- < li > introduced the spectral decomposition of operators</ li >
268284</ ol >
269285</ div >
270286</ div >
@@ -802,6 +818,21 @@ <h2 id="extending-the-expressions" class="anchor">Extending the expressions </h2
802818
803819< p > With these prerequisites we are now ready to introduce the density matrices, or density operators.</ p >
804820
821+ <!-- !split -->
822+ < h2 id ="density-matrices " class ="anchor "> Density Matrices </ h2 >
823+
824+ < p > As opposed to the wavefunction (a so-called pure state) in closed
825+ (Hermitian) quantum mechanics, the density matrix uniquely describes
826+ the state of a quantum system in an open system, as well as in closed
827+ systems.
828+ </ p >
829+
830+ < p > With pure states, the state of a quantum system is deterministic and
831+ leads to probabilities of outcomes of measurements. In contrast, what
832+ if the state itself is uncertain and therefore probabilistic? This is
833+ what density matrices describe.
834+ </ p >
835+
805836<!-- !split -->
806837< h2 id ="density-matrices-operators " class ="anchor "> Density matrices/operators </ h2 >
807838
@@ -844,6 +875,65 @@ <h2 id="properties-of-density-matrices" class="anchor">Properties of density mat
844875$$
845876
846877
878+ <!-- !split -->
879+ < h2 id ="important-properties-of-the-density-matrix " class ="anchor "> Important properties of the density matrix </ h2 >
880+ < div class ="panel panel-default ">
881+ < div class ="panel-body ">
882+ <!-- subsequent paragraphs come in larger fonts, so start with a paragraph -->
883+ < p > The density matrix of a pure state \( \vert\psi\rangle \) is \( \rho = \vert\psi\rangle\langle\psi\vert \).</ p >
884+ </ div >
885+ </ div >
886+
887+ < div class ="panel panel-default ">
888+ < div class ="panel-body ">
889+ <!-- subsequent paragraphs come in larger fonts, so start with a paragraph -->
890+ $$
891+ \rho = \rho^\dagger, \quad \lambda(\rho) \ge 0, \quad \mathrm{Tr}(\rho) = 1.
892+ $$
893+ </ div >
894+ </ div >
895+
896+ < div class ="panel panel-default ">
897+ < div class ="panel-body ">
898+ <!-- subsequent paragraphs come in larger fonts, so start with a paragraph -->
899+ < p > Given a probabilistic mixture of states with probabilities \( \{p_i\} \) and states \( \{\vert\psi_i\rangle\} \),</ p >
900+ $$
901+ \rho = \sum_i p_i \vert \psi_i\rangle\langle\psi_i\vert.
902+ $$
903+ </ div >
904+ </ div >
905+
906+
907+ <!-- !split -->
908+ < h2 id ="more-on-the-density-matrix " class ="anchor "> More on the density matrix </ h2 >
909+ < div class ="panel panel-default ">
910+ < div class ="panel-body ">
911+ <!-- subsequent paragraphs come in larger fonts, so start with a paragraph -->
912+ < p > For a \( d \times d \) density matrix \( \rho \), there exists an orthonormal basis \( \{\vert b_i\rangle\} \) such that</ p >
913+ $$
914+ \rho = \sum_i \lambda_i \vert b_i\rangle\langle b_i\vert,
915+ $$
916+
917+ < p > where \( \lambda_i \) are probabilities.</ p >
918+ </ div >
919+ </ div >
920+
921+ < div class ="panel panel-default ">
922+ < div class ="panel-body ">
923+ <!-- subsequent paragraphs come in larger fonts, so start with a paragraph -->
924+ < p > The expectation value of an observable \( X \) is</ p >
925+ $$
926+ \langle X \rangle = \mathrm{Tr}(\rho X) = \sum_i \lambda_i \langle b_i\vert X \vert b_i\rangle.
927+ $$
928+
929+ < p > The time evolution in a closed system with Hamiltonian \( H \) is</ p >
930+ $$
931+ \rho(t) = \exp{-\imath Ht} \rho(0) \exp{\imath Ht}.
932+ $$
933+ </ div >
934+ </ div >
935+
936+
847937<!-- !split -->
848938< h2 id ="first-entanglement-encounter-two-qubit-system " class ="anchor "> First entanglement encounter, two qubit system </ h2 >
849939
@@ -1056,6 +1146,9 @@ <h2 id="maximally-entangled" class="anchor">Maximally entangled </h2>
10561146$$
10571147
10581148
1149+ <!-- !split -->
1150+ < h2 id ="density-matrices-in-more-detail " class ="anchor "> Density matrices in more detail </ h2 >
1151+
10591152<!-- !split -->
10601153< h2 id ="second-exercise-set " class ="anchor "> Second exercise set </ h2 >
10611154
@@ -1110,14 +1203,15 @@ <h2 id="ex6-reduced-density-operators-ii" class="anchor">Ex6: Reduced density op
11101203</ p >
11111204
11121205<!-- !split -->
1113- < h2 id ="the-next-lecture-february-5-2025 " class ="anchor "> The next lecture, February 5, 2025 </ h2 >
1206+ < h2 id ="the-next-lecture-february-4-2026 " class ="anchor "> The next lecture, February 4, 2026 </ h2 >
11141207
11151208< p > In our next lecture, we will discuss</ p >
11161209< ol >
11171210< li > Discussion of entropy and entanglement</ li >
11181211< li > Gates and circuits and how to perform operations on states</ li >
11191212</ ol >
11201213< a href ="https://github.com/CompPhysics/QuantumComputingMachineLearning/blob/gh-pages/doc/Textbooks/Programming/chapter2.pdf " target ="_self "> Reading: Chapters 2.1-2.11 of Hundt's text</ a >
1214+
11211215<!-- ------------------- end of main content --------------- -->
11221216</ div > <!-- end container -->
11231217<!-- include javascript, jQuery *first* -->
@@ -1129,7 +1223,7 @@ <h2 id="the-next-lecture-february-5-2025" class="anchor">The next lecture, Febru
11291223</footer>
11301224-->
11311225< center style ="font-size:80% ">
1132- <!-- copyright --> © 1999-2025 , Morten Hjorth-Jensen. Released under CC Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 license
1226+ <!-- copyright --> © 1999-2026 , Morten Hjorth-Jensen. Released under CC Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 license
11331227</ center >
11341228</ body >
11351229</ html >
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