Quantum Computation: from a Programmer’s Perspective

Abstract This paper is the second part of a series of two articles on quantum computation. If the first part was mostly concerned with the mathematical formalism, here we turn to the programmer’s perspective. We analyze the various existing models of quantum computation and the problem of the stability of quantum information. We discuss the needs and challenges for the design of a scalable quantum programming language. We then present two interesting approaches and examine their strengths and weaknesses. Finally, we take a step back, and review the state of the research on the semantics of quantum computation, and how this can help in achieving some of the goals