Robust self-testing of the singlet

In this paper, we introduce a general framework to study the concept of robust self-testing which can be used to self-test maximally entangled pairs of qubits (EPR pairs) and local measurement operators. The result is based only on probabilities obtained from the experiment, with tolerance to experimental errors. In particular, we show that if the results of an experiment approach the Cirel'son bound, or approximate the Mayers-Yao-type correlations, then the experiment must contain an approximate EPR pair. More specifically, there exist local bases in which the physical state is close to an EPR pair, possibly encoded in a larger environment or ancilla. Moreover, in these bases the measurements are close to the qubit operators used to achieve the Cirel'son bound or the Mayers-Yao results. © 2012 IOP Publishing Ltd