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  • Open Access

Quantum gates via dynamical decoupling of a central qubit on IBMQ and N15-vacancy centers in diamond

Lucas Tsunaki1, Michael Dotan1, Kseniia Volkova1, and Boris Naydenov1,2,*

  • *Contact author: boris.naydenov@helmholtz-berlin.de
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Phys. Rev. A 113, 042627 – Published 30 April, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/6st7-qh12

Abstract

We demonstrate a hardware-agnostic protocol for realizing fast, high-fidelity gates through dynamical decoupling (DD) pulse sequences applied to a central qubit coupled to target qubits. The target qubits are controlled by leveraging their intrinsic interaction with the central qubit, eliminating the need for slow, error-prone direct control. We develop and implement the DD-gate protocol within two distinct frameworks: a general model with minimal assumptions, benchmarked on a gate-based digital quantum simulator given by the IBM quantum (IBMQ) platforms; and an experimentally realistic case with a N15-vacancy center (NV15) in diamond. Using IBMQ, we are able to elucidate the underlying quantum dynamics of the DD gates and test them, independently of experimental constraints. For NV15, we realize the protocol considering system-specific properties, which could represent a significant reduction in gate duration and improved technological scalability compared with current dynamical-decoupling-based control. We also propose a simple application for high-efficiency polarization of the N15 nuclear spin that could potentially be less technically demanding than current methods. Altogether, this work provides a robust strategy for quantum control that can be implemented in arbitrary systems fitting the central-target qubit architecture. Beyond these results, our open-source simulations and implementations for both platforms provide a practical framework for simulating time-dependent qubit dynamics on noisy intermediate-scale quantum era gate-based quantum processors.

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Phys. Rev. A 113, 042627– Published 30 April, 2026
  • Received 29 September 2025
  • Accepted 9 March 2026
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