Abstract:
Lattice gauge theories are typically described in terms of local, redundant degrees of freedom, supplemented by appropriate gauge constraints, i.e. Gauss's law or its generalizations.  The Hamiltonian is then a sum of gauge invariant operators acting on those degrees of freedom.  Trotter-Suzuki decompositions employed for digital quantum simulation, however, do not necessarily implement any one of those individual operators exactly -- leading to the possible systematic breaking of gauge constraints.  I will discuss how shear transformations in the space of electric quantum numbers of Abelian gauge theories facilitate Trotter-Suzuki approximation of the gauge invariant operators that exactly preserves the gauge constraints.