Quantum computing for heavy-ion physics: near-term status and future prospects

TL;DR

This work summarizes the corresponding presentation delivered at the Quark Matter 2025 conference in Frankfurt, Germany, and highlights recent results on the study of matter states, hard probes, and spin correlations using novel quantum technologies.

Abstract

We discuss recent advances in applying Quantum Information Science to problems in high-energy nuclear physics. After outlining key developments, open challenges, and emerging connections between these disciplines, we highlight recent results on the study of matter states, hard probes, and spin correlations using novel quantum technologies. This work summarizes the corresponding presentation delivered at the Quark Matter 2025 conference in Frankfurt, Germany.

Figures (5)

• Figure 1: Diagrammatic representation connecting the standard theoretical picture for the evolution of the bulk matter in heavy ion collisions (top) with the real-time evolution possible to implement in a quantum computer (bottom).
• Figure 2: Wavepacket evolution, visualized through the local chiral condensate $\chi_j$, using exact (classical) simulation (left) and quantum simulation in a real device (right). Figure adapted from Farrell:2024fit.
• Figure 3: (a) Illustration of the computation of the matrix element entering the PDF for a quark $f_q$: on the left we have the formulation involving out-of-time correlations of the quark fields connected by a light-like Wilson line, the right figure illustrates the formulation from Ji:2013dvaRadyushkin:2017cyf, which allows to extract the PDF from space-like correlators. (b) Discretization of light-like Wilson lines in a form ammeanable for quantum computations Echevarria:2020wct. (c) Application of the strategy in panel (b) to the calculation of the PDF for the first excited state in two-dimensional QED Banuls:2025wiq.
• Figure 4: Examples of quantum simulation of the dynamics of heavy and energetic probes immersed in a matter background: (a) evolution of the spectral functions of mesons at finite temperature in two dimensional QED Barata:2025jhd, (b) average momentum broadening of jets as a function of the saturation scales of the medium Barata:2023clv, (c) thermalization time for mesons as a function of drag in a two dimensional QED Angelides:2025hjt, (d) energy loss for a heavy particle in two dimensional QED Farrell:2024mgu.
• Figure 5: Tests of Bell inequalities in high energy physics: (a) measurement of $t\bar{t}$ correlations from the CMS collaboration CMS:2024pts, (b) spin correlations in a model calculation of $\Lambda \bar{\Lambda}$ hadronization in a QCD string Gong:2021bcp; curve shows expected analytic result, blue data was extracted from an IBM quantum processor, purple data used a classic emulator of a quantum computer.