SIC-POVMs and compatibility among quantum states (Q515429)

Summary: An unexpected connection exists between compatibility criteria for quantum states and Symmetric Informationally Complete quantum measurements (SIC-POVMs). Beginning with \textit{C. M. Caves}, \textit{C: A. Fuchs} and \textit{R. Schack}'s paper [``Conditions for compatibility of quantum state assignments'', Preprint, \url{arXiv:quant-ph/0206110}], I show that a qutrit SIC-POVM studied in other contexts enjoys additional interesting properties. Compatibility criteria provide a new way to understand the relationship between SIC-POVMs and mutually unbiased bases, as calculations in the SIC representation of quantum states make clear. This, in turn, illuminates the resources necessary for magic-state quantum computation, and why hidden-variable models fail to capture the vitality of quantum mechanics.