Hybrid Quantum-Classical Optimisation of Traveling Salesperson Problem

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Lytrosyngounis, Christos, Lytrosyngounis, Ioannis
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Lytrosyngounis, Christos
Lytrosyngounis, Ioannis
author_facet Lytrosyngounis, Christos
Lytrosyngounis, Ioannis
contents The Traveling Salesperson Problem (TSP), a quintessential NP-hard combinatorial optimisation challenge, is vital for logistics and network design but limited by exponential complexity in large instances. We propose a hybrid quantum-classical framework integrating variational quantum eigensolver (VQE) optimisation with classical machine learning, using K-means clustering for problem decomposition and a RandomForestRegressor for path refinement. Evaluated on 80 European cities (from 4 to 80 cities, 38,500 samples in total) via Qiskit's AerSimulator and ibm_kyiv 127-qubit backend, the hybrid approach outperforms quantum-only methods, achieving an approximation ratio of 1.0287 at 80 cities, a 47.5% improvement over quantum-only's 1.9614, nearing the classical baseline. Machine learning reduces variability in tour distances (interquartile range, IQR - the spread of the middle 50% of results relative to the median - from 0.06 to 0.04), enhancing stability despite noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) noise. This framework underscores hybrid strategies' potential for scalable TSP optimisation, with future hardware advancements promising practical quantum advantages.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2509_26229
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Hybrid Quantum-Classical Optimisation of Traveling Salesperson Problem
Lytrosyngounis, Christos
Lytrosyngounis, Ioannis
Quantum Physics
Machine Learning
The Traveling Salesperson Problem (TSP), a quintessential NP-hard combinatorial optimisation challenge, is vital for logistics and network design but limited by exponential complexity in large instances. We propose a hybrid quantum-classical framework integrating variational quantum eigensolver (VQE) optimisation with classical machine learning, using K-means clustering for problem decomposition and a RandomForestRegressor for path refinement. Evaluated on 80 European cities (from 4 to 80 cities, 38,500 samples in total) via Qiskit's AerSimulator and ibm_kyiv 127-qubit backend, the hybrid approach outperforms quantum-only methods, achieving an approximation ratio of 1.0287 at 80 cities, a 47.5% improvement over quantum-only's 1.9614, nearing the classical baseline. Machine learning reduces variability in tour distances (interquartile range, IQR - the spread of the middle 50% of results relative to the median - from 0.06 to 0.04), enhancing stability despite noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) noise. This framework underscores hybrid strategies' potential for scalable TSP optimisation, with future hardware advancements promising practical quantum advantages.
title Hybrid Quantum-Classical Optimisation of Traveling Salesperson Problem
topic Quantum Physics
Machine Learning
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.26229