Emerging models of quantum computation driven by multiphoton quantum interference, while not universal, may offer an exponential advantage over classical computers for certain problems. Implementing these circuits via geometric phase gates could mitigate requirements for error correction to achieve fault tolerance while retaining their relative physical simplicity. We report an experiment in which a geometric phase is embedded in an optical network with no closed loops, enabling quantum interference between two photons as a function of the phase.

• Received 15 February 2012

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.108.260505