Excitation spectrum as a resource for efficient two-qubit entangling gates

Physical systems representing qubits typically have one or more accessible quantum states in addition to the two states that encode the qubit. We demonstrate that active involvement of such auxiliary states can be beneficial in constructing entangling two-qubit operations. We investigate the general case of two multi-state quantum systems coupled via a quantum resonator. The approach is illustrated with the examples of three systems: self-assembled InAs/GaAs quantum dots, NV-centers in diamond, and superconducting transmon qubits. Fidelities of the gate operations are calculated based on numerical simulations of each system.