A pure-state source emits independent states from a fixed quantum state ensemble. Its average block density operator is the tensor power of the one-use average. Unassisted reliable quantum source compression preserves the emitted quantum states, rather than only their classical labels. Schumacher compression gives the optimum asymptotic qubit rate for such a source, with every larger rate achievable. Nonorthogonal equally likely pure states need not have entropy one: their classical labels have entropy one but their average density operator can have lower Von Neumann entropy.
A compression scheme consists of quantum channels
where each is a CPTP map. The Hilbert space is the compressed register. Its block rate in qubits per source qubit is , with asymptotic rate (or the limit when it exists).
Use the squared quantum fidelity convention for the ensemble overlap:
This definition tests preservation of the emitted vectors themselves, including nonorthogonal ones; preserving only their classical labels would be a different task. The scheme is reliable when as . This is the ensemble-average criterion for reliable quantum source compression. A square root is not taken in this definition, even though an unsquared convention is also used for quantum fidelity.
A compression-decompression scheme consists of quantum channels and , where . For the emitted pure-state ensemble, reliability means that the mean squared quantum fidelity tends to one:
The average is taken over the actual source distribution, rather than the worst possible input vector.
A standard stronger formulation of reliable quantum source compression requires
where entanglement fidelity tests preservation of a purification and its reference-system correlations. It implies the mean-fidelity condition for every pure-state ensemble of . Schumacher compression achieves this at any rate : choose , encode the quantum typical subspace, and map atypical outcomes to a fallback state. The composed channel has a Kraus term , so its entanglement fidelity is at least .
Squared quantum fidelity 2026-10-14
This is the square of the unsquared quantum fidelity, another common convention for fidelity of quantum states. If one state is the normalized pure state , then
By the Born rule, the squared quantum fidelity here is the probability that a measurement in quantum mechanics with acceptance orthogonal projector accepts . For two pure states it is : the comparison of with has acceptance probability and unsquared quantum fidelity .
For two general mixed states, neither quantum fidelity nor squared quantum fidelity is a probability that the states are equal. Equality of two specified density operators is a definite mathematical condition. The measurement characterization of quantum fidelity instead describes overlap between outcome probability distributions. The ensemble average used in reliable quantum source compression is normally the average squared quantum fidelity with the emitted pure state; the convention must be stated when comparing formulas.