Reliability of distance returned by search_undetectable_logical_error when dont_explore_edges_increasing_symptom_degre is set to True

Reliability of distance returned by search_undetectable_logical_error when dont_explore_edges_increasing_symptom_degre is set to True Ask Question Asked 9 months ago Modified today Viewed 121 times 0 I'm using Stim's search_undetectable_logical_errors to compute the distance of quantum error correction circuits (specifically D7 and D9 Steane codes with flag qubits). To make the computation tractable for larger circuits, I'm using the optimization parameter dont_explore_edges_increasing_symptom_degree=True. Code snippet: def compute_distance(circuit: stim.Circuit) -> int: error_mechanism = circuit.search_for_undetectable_logical_errors( dont_explore_edges_increasing_symptom_degree=True, dont_explore_detection_event_sets_with_size_above=9999, dont_explore_edges_with_degree_above=9999, canonicalize_circuit_errors=True, ) # Process error_mechanism to extract minimum distance Context: Without this optimization, distance computation for D9 circuits is computationally intractable With this optimization, I consistently get distance=9 results for my D9 circuits This represents a significant speedup that makes systematic testing feasible My concern: Since this is for research purposes where rigor is essential, I need to understand: Does setting dont_explore_edges_increasing_symptom_degree=True potentially cause the search to miss some undetectable logical errors, leading to overestimated distance values? Specific questions: Could this optimization cause false positives where the reported distance is higher than the true minimum distance? Is a distance=9 result with this optimization a reliable lower bound on the true distance? What types of error patterns, if any, might be missed by this optimization? I understand this trades completeness for computational feasibility, but I want to ensure the results are still meaningful for research conclusions about code performance. error-correctionstim Share Improve this question Follow asked Jul 24, 2025 at 5:16 Michael 11 1 bronze badge Add a comment 1 Answer Sorted by: Highest score (default) Date modified (newest first) Date created (oldest first) 0 Does setting dont_explore_edges_increasing_symptom_degree=True potentially cause the search to miss some undetectable logical errors, leading to overestimated distance values? Yes. All of the arguments to that method truncate the search in ways that can fail to find the shortest error. If you want guarantees, I recommend using stim.Circuit.shortest_error_sat_problem and a solver that guarantees an optimal solution. You can also bypass the problem by not using the distance as an intermediate value. Fit the Monte Carlo sampled logical error rate against system size, instead of distance, because e.g. you definitely know the width and height of the patch of qubits you are using. Share Improve this answer Follow answered Jul 24, 2025 at 15:48 Craig Gidney 51.5k1 1 gold badge 53 53 silver badges 134 134 bronze badges Add a comment Your Answer Sign up or log in Sign up using Google Sign up using Email and Password Post as a guest Name Email Required, but never shown Post Your Answer By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy. Start asking to get answers Find the answer to your question by asking. Ask question Explore related questions error-correctionstim See similar questions with these tags. 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