Algorithms for digital quantum simulations of 1+1 dimensional Quantum Electrodynamics*

Simulations of lattice gauge theories such as Lattice Quantum Chromodynamics or Quantum Electrodynamics (QED) on classical computers have been massively successful over the past decades. However, the conventional methods relying on Monte Carlo sampling face issues such as the notorious sign problem in certain regimes, for example in attempts to classically simulate lattice gauge theories at finite chemical potential, theories with a topological term, or their real-time dynamics. This motivates the ongoing search for new algorithms for quantum simulations of gauge theories. In this talk, I will present newly developed algorithms for digital quantum simulations of QED in 1+1 dimension (Schwinger Model) with nonzero topological θ-term, with a focus on the optimization of the gate count for ground state energy estimation.