On the Error Exponent Distribution of Code Ensembles over Classical-Quantum Channels

Abstract: We show that the probability distribution of the error exponent in i.i.d. code ensembles over classical-quantum (CQ) channels with arbitrary output states accumulates above a threshold that is strictly larger than the CQ random coding exponent (RCE) at low rates, while coinciding with it at rates close to the mutual information of the channel. This result, combined with the work by Dalai [1] and the recent ones by Renes [2] and Li and Yang [3], implies that the ensemble distribution of error exponents concentrates around the CQ RCE in the high rate regime. Moreover, in the same rate regime the threshold we derive coincides with the ensemble-average of the exponent, that is, the typical random coding (TRC) exponent [4].