Quantum Circuit Architecture Search on a Superconducting Processor.

Variational quantum algorithms (VQAs) have shown strong evidence to gain provable computational advantages in diverse fields such as finance, machine learning, and chemistry. However, the heuristic ansatz exploited in modern VQAs is incapable of balancing the trade-off between expressivity and trainability, which may lead to degraded performance when executed on noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) machines. To address this issue, here, we demonstrate the first proof-of-principle experiment of applying an efficient automatic ansatz design technique, i.

Work statistics for the adiabatic assumption in nonequilibrium many-body theory.

Keldysh field theory, based on adiabatic assumptions, serves as a widely used framework for addressing nonequilibrium many-body systems. Nonetheless, the validity of such adiabatic assumption when addressing interacting Gibbs states remains a topic of contention. Interestingly, the knowledge of work statistics developed in nonequilibrium thermodynamics helps us to quantitatively explore this problem.

Gate-tunable subband degeneracy in semiconductor nanowires.

Degeneracy and symmetry have a profound relation in quantum systems. Here, we report gate-tunable subband degeneracy in PbTe nanowires with a nearly symmetric cross-sectional shape. The degeneracy is revealed in electron transport by the absence of a quantized plateau.

Majorana Zero Modes Induced by the Meissner Effect at Small Magnetic Field.

One key difficulty in realizing Majorana zero modes (MZMs) is the required high magnetic field, which causes serious issues, e.g., shrinks the superconducting gap, reduces topological region, and weakens their robustness against disorders.

An endometrium of type C along with an endometrial thickness of < 8 mm are risk factors for ectopic pregnancy after stimulated cycles with fresh embryo transfer.

Background: The study investigated whether specific ultrasonographically observed endometrial features (including endometrium type and thickness) were linked to ectopic pregnancy after stimulated cycles with fresh embryo transfer.

Method: Of 6246 pregnancy cycles after fresh embryo transfer, 6076 resulted in intrauterine pregnancy and 170 in ectopic pregnancy. The primary outcome of the study was ectopic pregnancy, with the main variables being endometrium type and endometrial thickness.

Benchmarking universal quantum gates via channel spectrum.

Noise remains the major obstacle to scalable quantum computation. Quantum benchmarking provides key information on noise properties and is an important step for developing more advanced quantum processors. However, current benchmarking methods are either limited to a specific subset of quantum gates or cannot directly describe the performance of the individual target gate.

Noise-Resilient Phase Estimation with Randomized Compiling.

We develop an error mitigation method for the control-free phase estimation. We prove a theorem that under the first-order correction, the phases of a unitary operator are immune to the noise channels with only Hermitian Kraus operators, and therefore, certain benign types of noise for phase estimation are identified. By further incorporating the randomized compiling protocol, we can convert the generic noise in the phase estimation circuits into stochastic Pauli noise, which satisfies the condition of our theorem.

Anomalous universal conductance as a hallmark of non-locality in a Majorana-hosted superconducting island.

The non-local feature of topological states of matter is the key for the topological protection of quantum information and enables robust non-local manipulation in quantum information. Here we propose to manifest the non-local feature of a Majorana-hosted superconducting island by measuring the temperature dependence of Coulomb blockade peak conductance in different regimes. In the low-temperature regime, we discover a coherent double Majorana-assisted teleportation (MT) process, where any independent tunneling process always involves two coherent non-local MTs; and we also find an anomalous universal scaling behavior, i.

Plateau Regions for Zero-Bias Peaks within 5% of the Quantized Conductance Value 2e^{2}/h.

Probing an isolated Majorana zero mode is predicted to reveal a tunneling conductance quantized at 2e^{2}/h at zero temperature. Experimentally, a zero-bias peak (ZBP) is expected and its height should remain robust against relevant parameter tuning, forming a quantized plateau. Here, we report the observation of large ZBPs in a thin InAs-Al hybrid nanowire device.

Controllable Majorana vortex states in iron-based superconducting nanowires.

To reveal the non-Abelian braiding statistics of Majorana zero modes (MZMs), it is crucial to design a Majorana platform, in which MZMs can be easily manipulated in a broad topological nontrivial parameter space. This is also an essential step to confirm their existence. In this study, we propose an iron-based superconducting nanowire system with Majorana vortex states to satisfy desirable conditions.

An Endometrial Thickness < 8 mm Was Associated With a Significantly Increased Risk of EP After Freeze-Thaw Transfer: An Analysis of 5,960 Pregnancy Cycles.

Introduction: Endometrium characteristics that are most likely to induce ectopic pregnancy were investigated on the basis of the data of 5,960 pregnant freeze-thaw cycles.

Methods: A total of 5,960 pregnancy cycles after freeze-thaw embryos transfer were included, with the number of intrauterine and ectopic pregnancies being 5,777 and 183, respectively. Ectopic pregnancy was the primary outcome.

Suppressing Andreev Bound State Zero Bias Peaks Using a Strongly Dissipative Lead.

Hybrid semiconductor-superconductor nanowires are predicted to host Majorana zero modes that induce zero-bias peaks (ZBPs) in tunneling conductance. ZBPs alone, however, are not sufficient evidence due to the ubiquitous presence of Andreev bound states. Here, we implement a strongly resistive normal lead in InAs-Al nanowire devices and show that most of the expected Andreev bound state-induced ZBPs can be suppressed, a phenomenon known as environmental Coulomb blockade.

Universal Conductance Scaling of Andreev Reflections Using a Dissipative Probe.

The Majorana search is caught up in an extensive debate about the false-positive signals from nontopological Andreev bound states. We introduce a remedy using the dissipative probe to generate electron-boson interaction. We theoretically show that the interaction-induced renormalization leads to significantly distinct universal zero-bias conductance behaviors, i.

Dissipative Floquet Majorana Modes in Proximity-Induced Topological Superconductors.

We study a realistic Floquet topological superconductor, a periodically driven nanowire proximitized to an equilibrium s-wave superconductor. Because of the strong energy and density fluctuations caused by the superconducting proximity effect, the Floquet Majorana wire becomes dissipative. We show that the Floquet band structure is still preserved in this dissipative system.

Early prediction of live birth for assisted reproductive technology patients: a convenient and practical prediction model.

Live birth is the most important concern for assisted reproductive technology (ART) patients. Therefore, in the medical reproductive centre, obstetricians often need to answer the following question: "What are the chances that I will have a healthy baby after ART treatment?" To date, our obstetricians have no reference on which to base the answer to this question. Our research aimed to solve this problem by establishing prediction models of live birth for ART patients.

Uterine size and volume are associated with higher live birth rate in patients undergoing assisted reproduction technology: A prospective cohort study.

To investigate how uterine size and volume are associated with live birth rate in patients undergoing assisted reproduction technology.This prospective cohort study was conducted at the Reproductive Medicine Centre from January 2010 to May 2017. Multivariate binary logistic regression was used to evaluate the relations between uterine size, total volume, and live birth outcomes, after they were adjusted for the main influencing factors.

Next steps of quantum transport in Majorana nanowire devices.

Majorana zero modes are localized quasiparticles that obey non-Abelian exchange statistics. Braiding Majorana zero modes forms the basis of topologically protected quantum operations which could, in principle, significantly reduce qubit decoherence and gate control errors at the device level. Therefore, searching for Majorana zero modes in various solid state systems is a major topic in condensed matter physics and quantum computer science.

Uterine size and volume are associated with a higher clinical pregnancy rate in patients undergoing assisted reproduction technology: A longitudinal study (A STROBE-compliant article).

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships between uterine size and volume and clinical pregnancy rate.This longitudinal study was conducted among patients undergoing assisted reproduction technology (ART) treatment at the Reproductive Medicine Center from January 2010 to May 2017, all of whom provided informed consent to participate in the study. The uterine size, for all patients, was measured by transvaginal ultrasonography before ovarian stimulation.

Uterine dimensions in gravida 0 phase according to age, body mass index, and height in Chinese infertile women.

The aim of this study was to describe the size and the shape of gravida-0 uteri in infertile Chinese Han women according to age, height, and body mass index (BMI).Registered data obtained from the Department of Reproductive Medicine, Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, were collected and analyzed. The length, width, and anteroposterior diameter of the uteri of nonpregnant women aged 20 to 45 years were measured by transvaginal ultrasonography.

Proposed method for tunneling spectroscopy with ohmic dissipation using resistive electrodes: a possible Majorana filter.

We propose a scheme to distinguish zero-energy peaks due to Majorana from those due to other effects at finite temperature by simply replacing the normal metallic lead with a resistive lead (large R∼kΩ) in the tunneling spectroscopy. The dissipation effects due to the large resistance change the tunneling conductance significantly in different ways. The Majorana peak remains increase as temperature decreases G∼T(2r-1) for r=e2R/h<1/2.

Floquet Majorana fermions for topological qubits in superconducting devices and cold-atom systems.

We develop an approach to realizing a topological phase transition and non-Abelian braiding statistics with dynamically induced Floquet Majorana fermions (FMFs). When the periodic driving potential does not break fermion parity conservation, FMFs can encode quantum information. Quasienergy analysis shows that a stable FMF zero mode and two other satellite modes exist in a wide parameter space with large quasienergy gaps, which prevents transitions to other Floquet states under adiabatic driving.

Quantum phase transition in a resonant level coupled to interacting leads.

A Luttinger liquid is an interacting one-dimensional electronic system, quite distinct from the 'conventional' Fermi liquids formed by interacting electrons in two and three dimensions. Some of the most striking properties of Luttinger liquids are revealed in the process of electron tunnelling. For example, as a function of the applied bias voltage or temperature, the tunnelling current exhibits a non-trivial power-law suppression.

[Sperm-oocyte interaction and in vitro fertilization clinical outcomes in patients with unexplained infertility].

Objective: To determine the sperm-zona pellucida (ZP) binding and ZP-induced acrosome reaction in patients with unexplained infertility, and to discuss the relationship between ZP-induced acrosome reaction and fertilization rate.

Methods: We compared the fertilization rate and good embryo rate in patients with unexplained infertility after fertilization in 2 ways. Based on the causes of infertility, patients were divided into an unexplained infertility group (Group A) and a pure female tubal factor group (Group B).

[Impact of sperm source and parameters on the outcome of intracytoplasmic sperm injection].

Objective: To evaluate the impact of sperm source and sperm parameters on the outcome of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).

Methods: This retrospective study included 433 ICSI cycles from June 2005 to December 2008 in Reproductive Medical Center of Xiangya Hospital. The patients were divided into 2 major groups according to the source of spermatozoa used for ICSI: ejaculated (group A, n=336) and epididymal (group B, n=97).