Adiabatic Quantum Chemistry Simulations with Superconducting Qubits

The simulation of a quantum system with a classical computer without any approximations is intractable even for moderate systems sizes. It has been recognized early that using a controllable quantum system as a simulator could solve this for increasing system sizes. We propose a scalable quantum simulator based on driven superconducting qubits where the interactions are generated parametrically by polychromatic magnetic flux modulation of a tunable bus element. In this system, the XX- and YY-type interactions as well as transverse fields are independently tunable over a large parameter range. We experimentally demonstrate an adiabatic simulation using two superconducting qubits and one tunable bus element. The time required to reach the ground state of the Hamiltonian lies in the few microseconds range and therefore is well within the capability of currently available superconducting circuits.