Scalable noncontextuality inequalities and certification of multiqubit quantum systems

Abstract: We propose a family of noncontextuality inequalities and show that they can be used for certification of multiqubit quantum systems. Our scheme, unlike those based on non-locality, does not require spatial separation between the subsystems, yet it makes use of certain compatibility relations between measurements. Moreover, it is scalable in the sense that the number of expectation values that are to be measured to observe contextuality scales polynomially with the number of qubits that are being certified. In a particular case we also show our scheme to be robust errors and experimental imperfections. Our results seem promising as far as certification of physical set-ups is concerned in scenarios where spatial separation between the subsystems cannot be guaranteed.