Physical resources, as the name suggests, are the fundamental physical building blocks required in the lab (or even in simulations) for implementing a quantum communication protocol. They represent the lowest-level modules in a protocol hierarchy, linking an abstract functionality to a concrete resource. These are the physical resources used in the zoo:
Single qubit state preparation
The ability to prepare a single qubit quantum system in any arbitrary basis, or if the specific class is specified, the ability to prepare them from a certain class of quantum states.
Qudit state preparation
The ability to prepare a higher-dimensional quantum system (qudit) in any arbitrary state or from a certain class.
Separable Multi-qubit state preparation
The ability to prepare several separable (tensor product) quantum states.
Non-Separable (Entangled) Multi-qubit state preparation
The ability to prepare entangled states in the lab over a general n-qubit Hilbert space.
Single-qubit Gate
The ability to run an arbitrary gate (or a gate from a specific class) over a single qubit system
Multi-qubit Gate
The ability to run a multi-qubit operation over several qubits, including implementing entangling gates.
Single-qubit quantum memory
The ability to store an arbitrary state of a quantum system on a register for a considerable amount of time, often longer than is needed in the course of the computation.
Single-qubit measurement
The ability to measure a single qubit in an arbitrary (or specific) basis. This includes both projective measurement and POVMs.
Multi-qubit measurement
The ability to perform a general measurement over multiple qubits at once. This is also known as global measurement.
Classical Channel
A communication channel able to transmit classical bits, often between two spatially separated parties.
Error-free Classical Channel
A classical channel with no loss
Authenticated Classical Channel
A classical channel with the guarantee that the message received from a party is genuine and produced by an honest party.
Quantum Channel
A communication channel able to transmit quantum information, often between two spatially separated parties.
Authenticated Quantum Channel
A quantum channel with the guarantee that the state received from a party is genuine and produced by an honest party.
Secure Quantum Channel
A quantum channel which no one has access to other than the intended sender and receiver.
Secure Classical Channel
A classical channel which no one has access to other than the intended sender and receiver.