CSE 439     Course Information     Fall 2026

Quantum Computing (Via Linear Algebra)


Instructor: Dr. Kenneth W. Regan   326 Davis Hall   645-4738   regan@buffalo.edu

Office Hours:

Lectures

(LEC) TuTh   12:30pm-1:50pm   in Alumni 88

Fall 2026 Assignments

(will be accumulated here)
  1. Assignment 1, due Fri. 9/11, 11:59pm on CSE Autolab.
  2. Assignment 2, due Fri. 9/25, 11:59pm on CSE Autolab.
  3. Assignment 3, due Fri. 10/2, 11:59pm

2026 Lecture Notes

(Will follow 2025 fairly closely, some YMMV)

Sample Prelim I Exam (from Fall 2025).

Sample Final Exam (from Fall 2025).


2025 Lecture Notes



Required Reading


Examinations:


Organization:

The course will be graded on a total-points system. Letter grades will also be given for individual exams and possibly some assignments, as a help in telling you where you stand, but only the point totals will have official significance.

Homework: 35%
Prelims: 30%
Final: 35%

I reserve the right to 5% leeway in weighting while assigning the final letter grade-this is most typically done for students who do markedly well on the final exam, when it may be treated as if it were worth 40% for that student. This will only be done to an individual student's advantage, and will have no effect on others' grades. Letter grades follow the thresholds 90% for A, 84% for A-, 78% for B+, 72% for B, 66% for B-, 60% for C+, 54% for C, 48% for C-, 42% for D+, and 36% for D.


The homework will consist of weekly or bi-weekly problem sets. All submissions will be in PDF format via CSE Autolab---scanned or photographed PDFs of handwritten homeworks will be fine.

Problem set submissions must be your own individual work . No joint submissions will be accepted. In an early lecture I will explain the purpose of individual work, academic integrity, and the "qualitative" nature of exercises in this course. I will give guidelines on how work can be done and what can be discussed among you. Cheating will be punished as per department policy-in a graduate community this shouldn't have to be said, but alas it does. The Department's policy statement is available here.

My (KWR) general policy is not to implement a lateness-for-reduced-credit scheme. Instead I say that late work is not acceptable but extensions may be granted on request. Especially in smaller classes I am liberal with extensions, especially the 24-hour kind, but I still wish a request. In return, you get an answer key shortly afterward, and a relatively quick turnaround of graded work before the next problem set is due. In an exceptional situation, you may contact me beforehand.

Approximate Course Calendar

The plan is to cover Part I of the text, up through Shor's and Grover's Algorithms. Some material from the physics-intro Chapter 14 in the 2nd edition will be interspersed. In the last 4 weeks or so, the course will cover other topics in linear algebra and scientific computation: including spectra, singular-value decompositions, representation of tensors. These may have the theme of attempts to classically simulate quantum algorithms---in the ongoing debate over "quantum supremacy." Homeworks or Piazza posts will give indication from week to week of exactly what to read. I cannot spell out a timetable in greater detail now because my lectures will adjust to the needs of the class. I welcome feedback to me personally.

Fall 2025 Assignments

(some answers will be given for practice)
  1. Assignment 1, due Thu. Sep. 11, 11:59pm on CSE Autograder.
  2. Assignment 2, due Thu. Sep. 25, 11:59pm on CSE Autograder.
  3. Assignment 3, due Thu. Oct. 2, 11:59pm on CSE Autograder.
  4. Assignment 4, due Sun. Oct. 26, 11:59pm on CSE Autograder.
  5. Assignment 5, due Thu. Nov. 6, 11:59pm on CSE Autograder.
  6. Assignment 6, due Thu. Nov. 13, 11:59pm on CSE Autograder.
  7. Assignment 7, due Wed. Dec. 3, 11:59pm on CSE Autograder.
  8. Assignment 8, due Mon. Dec. 8, 11:59pm on CSE Autograder