Hybrid adiabatic quantum computing for tomographic image reconstruction -- opportunities and limitations

Abstract: Our goal is to reconstruct tomographic images with few measurements and a low signal-to-noise ratio. In clinical imaging, this helps to improve patient comfort and reduce radiation exposure. As quantum computing advances, we propose to use an adiabatic quantum computer and associated hybrid methods to solve the reconstruction problem. Tomographic reconstruction is an ill-posed inverse problem. We test our reconstruction technique for image size, noise content, and underdetermination of the measured projection data. We then present the reconstructed binary and integer-valued images of up to 32 by 32 pixels. The demonstrated method competes with traditional reconstruction algorithms and is superior in terms of robustness to noise and reconstructions from few projections. We postulate that hybrid quantum computing will soon reach maturity for real applications in tomographic reconstruction. Finally, we point out the current limitations regarding the problem size and interpretability of the algorithm.