IYH Thesis: Quantum reliability depends on embracing hardware-continuous compilation where software negotiates with the system’s error topology rather than simply instructing hardware.

Paper: Vezvaee, Arian & Tripathi, Vinay & Kowsari, Daria & Levenson-Falk, Eli & Lidar, Daniel. (2025). Virtual-Z Gates and Symmetric Gate Compilation. PRX Quantum. 6. 20348. 10.1103/PRXQuantum.6.020348 [on RG, linking does not work in Questions]

Taxonomic Disruption - Shattering the “Gate Compilation” Frame

We reject the paper’s label as 'just' a gate compilation study. The paper represents an error ontology revolution.

• Conventional View: VZ gates are mere software conveniences.
• Disrupted Reality: VZ gates act as control-plane arbiters that reconfigure qubit-environment interfaces. Asymmetric compilation generates new error species by mismapping computational trajectories onto physical paths.

Operational Truth Quantum errors evolve during compilation rather than existing as fixed properties.

Steel-Man Construction - The Case for Asymmetry

Strongest Opposing Argument “Asymmetric compilation minimizes gate depth and calibration overhead. In NISQ devices with T1-dominated error budgets, speed beats symmetry.”

Extracted Core Truth Latency matters for coherence-limited systems. However, empirical data reveal that this advantage fails when:

• States traverse |0⟩ and |1⟩ during gates (T1 asymmetry).
• Dynamical decoupling (DD) sequences degenerate into single-axis corrections like UR4.
• Pulse interference becomes the dominant error source.

Pragmatic Outcome Tracing - What Actually Works

| Approach | Theoretical Promise | Observed Outcome |

|--------------------------|-----------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------|

| Asymmetric Compilation | Lower latency | 15–20% fidelity gap in I±i⟩ states; DD sequence corruption |

| Symmetric Compilation | Ideal trajectories | Equalized state decay; correct URₙ implementation |

| Short Pulse Intervals | Faster decoupling | Coherent errors from pulse interference |

| 2τ Pulse Intervals | Suboptimal theory | 60% oscillation suppression (Fig. 6) |

Brutal Effectiveness Metric Symmetric compilation plus optimized pulse spacing outperforms “optimal” DD theory by aligning with hardware reality.

Philosophical Underpinning Exposure

• Hidden Assumption in Quantum Compilers All mathematically equivalent compilations are assumed to be physically interchangeable. Reality reveals that software-defined phase shifts alter qubit-bath interaction pathways (see Fig. 1a).
• Industry Blind Spot Calibration efforts focus on gates rather than the compiler-induced error topology.

Unspoken Value The field prioritizes gate speed over error predictability, a fatal trade for fault tolerance.

Contrarian Value Identification

Three high-impact opportunities arise from asymmetric compilation:

Strategic Imperatives

Final Truth: Quantum reliability depends on embracing hardware-continuous compilation where software negotiates with the system’s error topology rather than simply instructing hardware