Educational portal in quantum computing

The Institut quantique de l’Université de Sherbrooke provides a unique educational tool through the animated series The Quantum Enigmas. The animated series features an introductory video to the key concepts of quantum computing followed by a series of enigmas.

In collaboration with IBM SkillsBuild, we offer you a series of introductory exercises. For those seeking to develop a greater understanding of quantum computing, Qiskit is an open-source toolkit developed by IBM that offers a series of advanced exercices on the enigmas.

Discover the fascinating world of quantum programming with Alice and her friends Bob, Charlie, Dahlia and Eve. You will travel through a universe populated by characters that will challenge you. At the same time, you will encounter several fundamental concepts of quantum computing.

The Quantum Enigmas is the recipient of Applied Arts Canada's Best Illustration 2023 award.

We wish you an inspiring learning journey!

Introduction 001 - Required notions

Notions

Qubit, Bloch sphere, measurement, entanglement, superposition

Quantum gates: NOT, Z, Hadamard, Ry, CNOT, CH, CZ, Toffoli, SWAP

Learning exercises

SkillsBuild offers a series of introductory-level exercises for each enigma. You can set up a free SkillsBuild account and access the learning module for this enigma.

Quantum Enigma 001 - The treasure door

Difficulty level = 1/5

Notions

Entanglement, superposition, quantum parallelism

Quantum gates: NOT, CNOT, SWAP, Hadamard

Learning exercises

SkillsBuild offers a series of introductory-level exercises for each enigma. You can set up a free SkillsBuild account and access the learning module for this enigma.

Quantum Enigma 002 - The four hair colors

Difficulty level = 2/5

Notions

Entanglement, superposition, quantum parallelism, parity

Quantum gates: CNOT, Hadamard

Learning exercises

SkillsBuild offers a series of introductory-level exercises for each enigma. You can set up a free SkillsBuild account and access the learning module for this enigma.

Quantum Enigma 003 - The four-square chessboard

Difficulty level = 3/5

Notions

Superposition, parity, control by the 0 state

Quantum gates: NOT, CNOT, Hadamard, Toffoli

Learning exercises

SkillsBuild offers a series of introductory-level exercises for each enigma. You can set up a free SkillsBuild account and access the learning module for this enigma.

Quantum Enigma 004 - The Monty Hall problem

Difficulty level = 3/5

Notions

Superposition, 3 qubit entanglement, multi-qubit quantum states

Quantum gates: NOT, CNOT, CH, Ry

Learning exercises

SkillsBuild offers a series of introductory-level exercises for each enigma. You can set up a free SkillsBuild account and access the learning module for this enigma.

Quantum Enigma 005 - The Birthdays

Difficulty level = 2/5

Notions

Qubit rotation angle, distribution of equal probabilities for a number other than a power of 2

Quantum gates: NOT, Hadamard, Ry, CNOT, CH, CRy

Learning exercises

A link will soon be available to access the introductive SkillsBuild exercises.

Quantum Enigma 006 - Train Challenge

Difficulty level = 3/5

Notions

Qubit rotation angle, amplitude encoding

Quantum gates: NOT, Hadamard, Toffoli, CH, CRy

Learning exercises

A link will soon be available to access the introductive SkillsBuild exercises.

Quantum Enigma 007 - The Trivia Night

Difficulty level = 3/5

Notions

Graph coloring problem and Quantum approximate optimization algorithm (QAOA)

Quantum gates: Hadamard, Rx, Rzz

Learning exercises

A link will soon be available to access the introductive SkillsBuild exercises.

Quantum Enigma 008 - Extreme sports

Difficulty level = 3/5

Notions

GHZ State, Measurement along different bases

Quantum gates: NOT, Hadamard, Ry, Rz, CNOT, CH, CRy, CRz

Learning exercises

A link will soon be available to access the introductive SkillsBuild exercises.

Algorithm 001 - Deutsch – The statue vandals

Difficulty level = 4/5

Notions

Deutsch algorithm, phase kickback

Quantum gates: NOT, CNOT, Hadamard

Learning exercises

A link will soon be available to access the introductive SkillsBuild exercises.

Algorithm 002 - Grover – The quantum library

Difficulty level = 4/5

Notions

Grover algorithm, probability amplitude, interference

Quantum gates: NOT, Hadamard, Z, CZ

Learning exercises

A link will soon be available to access the introductive SkillsBuild exercises.

2-qubit dance

Learn your quantum logic gates by dancing with this tutorial!

With this game, you simulate what happens in a quantum computer. In a nutshell, quantum computers store information in qubits, which are programmed using logic gates. We can represent a qubit in three dimensions using the Bloch sphere, which allows us to reproduce with our arms the transformations undergone by a qubit. The 2-qubit dance game invites you to perform quantum programming by following the algorithm of the choreography.

Tutorial

Game

Videoclip

Resources

Explore the free SkillsBuild learning platform.

Access the Qiskit textbook.

Test the circuits by yourself using the IBM Quantum platform.

Discover the Curieux quantiques.

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