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  • Open Access

Passive Quantum Error Correction of Photon Loss at Breakeven

Shruti Shirol, Sean van Geldern, Hanzhe Xi, and Chen Wang*

  • *Contact author: wangc@umass.edu
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Phys. Rev. X 16, 021042 – Published 22 May, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/nvbm-97vs

Abstract

Physical qubits in a quantum computer are often represented by superposition states of single particles or excitations. Decay of the excitation itself is a fundamental error channel that is difficult to overcome via external drive or control techniques. Quantum error correcting codes, which encode information in superpositions involving multiple excitations, provide a path to preserve information beyond the capacity of individual excitations, but typically require exquisite active operations on the system. Here, we demonstrate a steady-state driven-dissipative quantum system, composed of a superconducting cavity and a transmon ancilla, that preserves a logical qubit beyond the photon-lifetime limit by about 5% using a binomial encoding. This realization of continuous quantum error correction at the breakeven point highlights the quantitative competitiveness of passive correction strategies, while circumventing some demanding hardware requirements of its active counterparts.

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Popular Summary

Overcoming the stochastic loss of elementary excitations, such as photon decay, is a fundamental requirement for building reliable quantum memories. We demonstrate a steady-state driven dissipative system that protects a logical qubit against single-photon loss using a binomial bosonic encoding. By engineering a continuous parity-recovery process via a three-level superconducting transmon ancilla, we achieve autonomous quantum error correction without the need for active measurement-based feedback. Our results show a logical coherence time which exceeds the intrinsic lifetime of individual photons, marking the first instance of continuous correction reaching the breakeven point. This approach provides a hardware-efficient alternative to active correction strategies by eliminating technically demanding high-fidelity readout and fast control requirements. Such passive stabilization techniques offer a competitive pathway for scaling quantum processors while extending information storage beyond the limits of physical hardware.

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Phys. Rev. X 16, 021042– Published 22 May, 2026
  • Received 29 October 2025
  • Accepted 3 March 2026
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