Classifying locally distinguishable sets: No activation across bipartitions

Abstract: A set of orthogonal quantum states is said to be locally indistinguishable if they cannot be perfectly distinguished by local operations and classical communication (LOCC). Otherwise, the states are locally distinguishable. However, locally indistinguishable states may find applications in information processing protocols. In this sense, locally indistinguishable states are useful. On the other hand, it is usual to consider that locally distinguishable states are useless. Nevertheless, recent works suggest that locally distinguishable states should be given due consideration as in certain situations these states can be converted to locally indistinguishable states under orthogonality-preserving LOCC (OP-LOCC). Such a counterintuitive phenomenon motivates us to ask when the aforesaid conversion is possible and when it is not. In this work, we provide different structures of locally distinguishable product and entangled states which do not allow the aforesaid conversion. We also provide certain structures of locally distinguishable states which allow the aforesaid conversion. In this way, we classify the locally distinguishable sets by introducing hierarchies among them. In a multipartite system, this study becomes more involved as there exist multipartite locally distinguishable sets which cannot be converted to locally indistinguishable sets by OP-LOCC across any bipartition. We say this as ``no activation across bi-partitions".