Introduction
Skaden is a Python CLI for working with quantum circuits. Use it to run local simulations, compare circuit revisions, record experiments, and package results for review. An optional conversational model can propose the next action. Skaden validates and executes tool calls, applies permissions, and records the results.
Start with a circuit file. The built-in experiment runtime accepts OpenQASM and runs through Qiskit and Aer. Circuit intake also accepts Qiskit QPY exports. Running arbitrary repository Python and notebooks remains outside the current workflow.
Start locally
- Install a reviewed revision. The documented installation path is private design-partner access over SSH. These docs do not announce a public package release.
- Run your first local workflow. Check the installation, run a Bell experiment, and inspect its recorded result without model or QPU credentials.
- Connect a model when you want conversational assistance. Model access is separate from the deterministic local commands.
If installation or execution stops, use the troubleshooting guide to check the model profile, platform, and sandbox before retrying.
Understand what a result means
A passing check applies to its recorded inputs, engine, seeds, shots, and declared thresholds. It does not establish algorithmic correctness, quantum advantage, or hardware performance. An inconclusive check stays inconclusive.
Skaden stores evidence with content digests and verifies those digests when loading records. This detects inconsistent or altered records, but the digests are not signatures. Another process with your OS user's authority can rewrite both a record and its digest.
Read execution and approvals for the tool-call path, and who controls what for the responsibilities of the model, Skaden, and the operator.
Choose the next workflow
| Your task | Guide |
|---|---|
| Import a circuit or check it against a baseline | Circuit intake and checks |
| Record, reproduce, or sweep an experiment | Experiments and regression |
| Share a completed run and verify its archive | Publish and cite |
| Review the controls before using IBM hardware | Hardware boundary |
Hardware is disabled by default and uses a separate human-operated broker. The model cannot enable an account, approve a hardware plan, submit it, or cancel a job. Read the current capabilities and limits before choosing a platform or planning a study.
Technical sources: Installation, experiment runtime, circuit intake, regression checks, and QPU execution.