20 Def 10: Spacetime Logical Fault
A spacetime logical fault is a collection of space-faults and time-faults that does not violate any detector (has empty syndrome) and causes a logical error. A spacetime stabilizer is a collection of space-faults and time-faults that does not violate any detector and does not affect the logical information. Every fault with empty syndrome is either a spacetime stabilizer (trivial) or a spacetime logical fault (non-trivial). The set of spacetime stabilizers forms a group, and two faults are equivalent if they differ by a spacetime stabilizer.
20.1 Syndrome
Given base measurement outcomes and a spacetime fault \(f\), the faulted outcomes are defined by:
Time-faults flip the corresponding measurement outcomes.
The syndrome of a spacetime fault \(f\) with respect to a detector collection \(\mathrm{DC}\) and base outcomes is the set of detectors violated by \(f\):
A detector \(D\) is in the syndrome of a fault \(f\) if \(D \in \mathrm{computeSyndrome}(\mathrm{DC}, \mathrm{base}, f)\).
A fault \(f\) has empty syndrome if it violates no detectors:
A fault \(f\) has empty syndrome if and only if every detector \(D\) in the collection is satisfied by the faulted outcomes:
We unfold the definitions of \(\mathrm{hasEmptySyndrome}\) and \(\mathrm{computeSyndrome}\), then rewrite using the fact that a filter over a finset is empty if and only if the predicate holds for no element. For the forward direction, assume \(\mathrm{hasEmptySyndrome}\) holds, let \(D \in \mathrm{DC}.\mathrm{detectors}\), and rewrite using \(\mathrm{Detector.satisfied\_ iff\_ not\_ violated}\) to conclude \(D\) is satisfied. For the converse, assume every detector is satisfied, let \(D \in \mathrm{DC}.\mathrm{detectors}\), rewrite using the negation of \(\mathrm{Detector.satisfied\_ iff\_ not\_ violated}\), and apply the hypothesis.
20.2 Identity Fault Has Empty Syndrome
If the base outcomes satisfy all detectors, then the identity fault has empty syndrome:
We rewrite using the characterization \(\mathrm{hasEmptySyndrome\_ iff}\). Let \(D \in \mathrm{DC}.\mathrm{detectors}\). We first establish that \(\mathrm{applyFaultToOutcomes}(\mathrm{base}, 1) = \mathrm{base}\) by extensionality: for all \(m, t\), since the identity fault has no time errors, the outcome is unchanged. This holds by reflexivity. Rewriting with this equality, the hypothesis \(\mathrm{DC}.\mathrm{allSatisfied}(\mathrm{base})\), expanded via \(\mathrm{DetectorCollection.allSatisfied\_ iff}\), gives \(D.\mathrm{isSatisfied}(\mathrm{base})\) directly.
20.3 Logical Effect Predicate
An abstract predicate capturing whether a fault affects the logical information. Given a logical effect predicate \(\ell : \mathrm{SpacetimeFault} \to \mathrm{Prop}\) and a fault \(f\):
This captures changes to the gauging measurement outcome or introduction of logical Pauli errors.
A fault preserves logical information if it does not affect it:
20.4 Spacetime Stabilizers
A fault \(f\) is a spacetime stabilizer with respect to a detector collection \(\mathrm{DC}\), base outcomes, and logical effect predicate \(\ell \) if:
\(f\) has empty syndrome: \(\mathrm{hasEmptySyndrome}(\mathrm{DC}, \mathrm{base}, f)\), and
\(f\) preserves logical information: \(\mathrm{preservesLogicalInfo}(\ell , f)\).
The spacetime stabilizer set is:
20.5 Spacetime Logical Faults
A fault \(f\) is a spacetime logical fault with respect to a detector collection \(\mathrm{DC}\), base outcomes, and logical effect predicate \(\ell \) if:
\(f\) has empty syndrome: \(\mathrm{hasEmptySyndrome}(\mathrm{DC}, \mathrm{base}, f)\), and
\(f\) affects logical information: \(\mathrm{affectsLogicalInfo}(\ell , f)\).
The spacetime logical fault set is:
20.6 Partition of Empty-Syndrome Faults
The set of faults with empty syndrome:
Every fault with empty syndrome is either a spacetime stabilizer or a spacetime logical fault: if \(\mathrm{hasEmptySyndrome}(\mathrm{DC}, \mathrm{base}, f)\), then
We consider two cases based on whether \(\ell (f)\) holds. If \(\ell (f)\) holds, then \(f\) is a spacetime logical fault, constructed from the empty syndrome hypothesis and \(\ell (f)\). If \(\neg \ell (f)\), then \(f\) is a spacetime stabilizer, constructed from the empty syndrome hypothesis and \(\neg \ell (f)\).
No fault can be both a spacetime stabilizer and a spacetime logical fault:
Assume both hold. Then from the stabilizer property we have \(\neg \ell (f)\) (preserves logical info), and from the logical fault property we have \(\ell (f)\) (affects logical info). This is a contradiction.
The union of spacetime stabilizers and spacetime logical faults equals the set of empty-syndrome faults:
By extensionality, it suffices to show membership equivalence for an arbitrary fault \(f\). We simplify using the definitions of the three sets. For the forward direction, if \(f\) is in the left-hand union, then \(f\) is either a stabilizer or a logical fault, and in both cases we extract the empty syndrome condition. For the reverse direction, if \(f\) has empty syndrome, we apply the partition theorem to conclude \(f\) is either a stabilizer or a logical fault.
20.7 Spacetime Stabilizers Form a Subgroup
Alogical effect predicate \(\ell \) is group-like if:
The identity preserves logical info: \(\neg \ell (1)\).
Closure under multiplication: for all \(f, g\), if \(\neg \ell (f)\) and \(\neg \ell (g)\), then \(\neg \ell (f \cdot g)\).
Closure under inverse: for all \(f\), if \(\neg \ell (f)\), then \(\neg \ell (f^{-1})\).
The syndrome computation respects the group structure if:
The identity has empty syndrome.
For all \(f, g\), if both have empty syndrome, then \(f \cdot g\) has empty syndrome.
For all \(f\), if \(f\) has empty syndrome, then \(f^{-1}\) has empty syndrome.
Under the conditions that the logical effect predicate is group-like and the syndrome computation respects the group structure, the spacetime stabilizers form a subgroup of \(\mathrm{SpacetimeFault}(V, E, M)\).
The carrier is the spacetime stabilizer set. Closure under multiplication, the identity element, and closure under inverses are verified using the respective group-like and syndrome homomorphism properties.
20.8 Fault Equivalence
Two faults \(f\) and \(g\) are fault equivalent if they differ by a spacetime stabilizer:
For all faults \(f\), \(\mathrm{FaultEquivalent}(\mathrm{DC}, \mathrm{base}, \ell , f, f)\).
We unfold the definition of fault equivalence. Since \(f^{-1} \cdot f = 1\) by \(\mathrm{inv\_ mul\_ cancel}\), it suffices to show that \(1\) is in the spacetime stabilizer subgroup. This follows from the identity membership property of the subgroup.
If \(\mathrm{FaultEquivalent}(\mathrm{DC}, \mathrm{base}, \ell , f, g)\), then \(\mathrm{FaultEquivalent}(\mathrm{DC}, \mathrm{base}, \ell , g, f)\).
We unfold fault equivalence in both the hypothesis and the goal. We establish that \(g^{-1} \cdot f = (f^{-1} \cdot g)^{-1}\) by simplifying using \(\mathrm{mul\_ inv\_ rev}\) and \(\mathrm{inv\_ inv}\). Rewriting with this identity, the result follows from closure of the spacetime stabilizer subgroup under inverses.
If \(\mathrm{FaultEquivalent}(\mathrm{DC}, \mathrm{base}, \ell , f, g)\) and \(\mathrm{FaultEquivalent}(\mathrm{DC}, \mathrm{base}, \ell , g, k)\), then \(\mathrm{FaultEquivalent}(\mathrm{DC}, \mathrm{base}, \ell , f, k)\).
We unfold fault equivalence in the hypotheses and the goal. We establish the key identity \(f^{-1} \cdot k = (f^{-1} \cdot g) \cdot (g^{-1} \cdot k)\) by simplifying with \(\mathrm{mul\_ assoc}\) and \(\mathrm{mul\_ inv\_ cancel\_ left}\). Rewriting with this identity, the result follows from closure of the spacetime stabilizer subgroup under multiplication.
Fault equivalence is an equivalence relation (reflexive, symmetric, and transitive).
The equivalence is constructed directly from the three component proofs: reflexivity from \(\mathrm{faultEquivalent\_ refl}\), symmetry from \(\mathrm{faultEquivalent\_ symm}\), and transitivity from \(\mathrm{faultEquivalent\_ trans}\).
The fault setoid is the setoid on \(\mathrm{SpacetimeFault}(V, E, M)\) induced by the fault equivalence relation.
20.9 Equivalence Classes as Cosets
The fault quotient is the quotient of \(\mathrm{SpacetimeFault}(V, E, M)\) by the spacetime stabilizer subgroup:
A fault \(f\) with empty syndrome is a spacetime logical fault if and only if it is not a spacetime stabilizer:
We prove both directions. For the forward direction, assume \(f\) is a logical fault and suppose for contradiction that \(f\) is also a stabilizer. Then the stabilizer’s \(\mathrm{preservesLogical}\) property contradicts the logical fault’s \(\mathrm{affectsLogical}\) property. For the reverse direction, assume \(f\) is not a stabilizer. We construct a logical fault: the empty syndrome is given by hypothesis. For the logical effect, we argue by contradiction: if \(\neg \ell (f)\), then \(f\) would be a stabilizer (constructed from the empty syndrome and \(\neg \ell (f)\)), contradicting the assumption that \(f\) is not a stabilizer.