Quantum Optimal Control Using MAGICARP: Combining Pontryagin's Maximum Principle and Gradient Ascent

Abstract: We introduce the MAGICARP algorithm, a numerical optimization method for quantum optimal control problems that combines the structure provided by Pontryagin's Maximum Principle (PMP) and the robustness of gradient ascent techniques, such as GRAPE. MAGICARP is formulated as a "shooting technique", aiming to determine the appropriate initial adjoint momentum to realize a target quantum gate. This method naturally incorporates time and energy optimal constraints through a PMP-informed pulse structure. We demonstrate MAGICARP's effectiveness through illustrative numerical examples, comparing its performance to GRAPE and highlighting its advantages in specific scenarios.