- #1
jumi
- 28
- 0
Just started a Quantum Computing course, and I'm getting continuously confused and lost in the class. I don't think the class is "out of my league" as I've been able to ace every physics class I've taken so far, so I don't want to drop the class.
That said, I'm getting confused at the most basic concepts in the course. I have no idea what normalizing a quantum state means or how to normalize something. It seems like the professor is just pulling variables out of thin air.
For example, say we have 2 qubits like this:
[itex]\left|ψ\right\rangle[/itex] = [itex]\alpha_{00}[/itex][itex]\left|00\right\rangle[/itex] + [itex]\alpha_{01}[/itex][itex]\left|01\right\rangle[/itex] + [itex]\alpha_{10}[/itex][itex]\left|10\right\rangle[/itex] + [itex]\alpha_{11}[/itex][itex]\left|11\right\rangle[/itex]
How do we determine when the 1st qubit is 0? If we DO measure the 1st qubit to be zero, how then do we determine when the 2nd qubit is also zero?
(BTW, this isn't homework. These are concepts I'm desperately trying to understand so I can TRY to do my homework...)
For what it's worth, I've never taken an actual Linear Algebra or Probability course. I've only ever been taught what I needed for whatever class needed it.
Thanks in advance.
That said, I'm getting confused at the most basic concepts in the course. I have no idea what normalizing a quantum state means or how to normalize something. It seems like the professor is just pulling variables out of thin air.
For example, say we have 2 qubits like this:
[itex]\left|ψ\right\rangle[/itex] = [itex]\alpha_{00}[/itex][itex]\left|00\right\rangle[/itex] + [itex]\alpha_{01}[/itex][itex]\left|01\right\rangle[/itex] + [itex]\alpha_{10}[/itex][itex]\left|10\right\rangle[/itex] + [itex]\alpha_{11}[/itex][itex]\left|11\right\rangle[/itex]
How do we determine when the 1st qubit is 0? If we DO measure the 1st qubit to be zero, how then do we determine when the 2nd qubit is also zero?
(BTW, this isn't homework. These are concepts I'm desperately trying to understand so I can TRY to do my homework...)
For what it's worth, I've never taken an actual Linear Algebra or Probability course. I've only ever been taught what I needed for whatever class needed it.
Thanks in advance.