Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

For FAQs specific to the execution modes, see the Qiskit Runtime execution modes FAQ guide.

How do I cite Qiskit in my research?

Cite Qiskit by using the included BibTeX file.

How do I cite an IBM Quantum computer in my research?

For research papers, we encourage authors to acknowledge IBM Quantum™ by using:

We acknowledge the use of IBM Quantum services for this work. The views expressed are those of the authors, and do not reflect the official policy or position of IBM or the IBM Quantum team.

Paper references should be cited as follows:

IBM Quantum. https://quantum.ibm.com/, 2021

Quantum processing units in the paper should be referenced by their unique name (for example, ibmq_vigo) and optionally adding the version (for example, ibmq_vigo v1.0.2). We also encourage referencing the processor. For example:

In this paper we used ibmq_vigo, which is one of the IBM Quantum Canary processors.

Example of citing an IBM Quantum program:

IBM Quantum (2022). Estimator primitive (Version x.y.z) [computer software]. https://quantum.ibm.com/

How do I cite IBM Quantum Composer in my research?

Example of citing IBM Quantum Composer:

IBM Quantum Composer. 2023. url: https://quantum.ibm.com/composer

Why do I receive the error message "AttributeError: QuantumCircuit object has no attribute save_state" when using save_*method on a circuit?

The save_* instructions are part of Qiskit Aer project, a high performance simulator for quantum circuits. These instructions do not exist outside of Qiskit Aer and are added dynamically to the QuantumCircuit class by Qiskit Aer on import. To use these instructions you must first import qiskit_aer in your program. Refer to the qiskit_aer.library for details.

Why do my results from real devices differ from my results from the simulator?

The simulator models an ideal environment, without noise or decoherence. When jobs are run on the real devices, noise from the environment and decoherence cause the qubits to behave differently than in an ideal environment.

How do I delete my account and data?

To delete your account, go to your account page. Scroll to the Delete Account section, and click Delete your account and account data. You will receive an email with a link to delete your account.

Questions about cloud simulator retirement

See the migration guide for details on the retirement of cloud simulators, and how to migrate to local simulators.

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