A new take on color mixing theory that accounts for quantum effects. Quantum Palette encodes colors into quantum states and allows users to explore how quantum entanglement affects color mixing.
Quantum Palette is based on the HSL to single-qubit encoding presented in arXiv:2509.01442. Each color is mapped to a quantum state where:
- Hue (H) is encoded as a rotation around the Z-axis (Rz gate)
- Lightness (L) is encoded as a rotation around the Y-axis (Ry gate)
- Saturation (S) remains classical and unchanged during quantum operations
When colors are mixed, a parametric SWAP (p-SWAP) gate with angle π/10 is applied between the corresponding qubits. This creates quantum entanglement between the color states, leading to non-classical color mixing behavior that depends on the order and history of mixing operations.
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Select a Color: Click the color picker button (top-left) to open the color selector. Choose any color by clicking on the saturation/lightness gradient and adjusting the hue slider.
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Add Colors to the Palette: With a color selected, click anywhere on the canvas to create a new color splash. Each color is assigned a qubit in the quantum circuit.
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Mix Colors: Click on an existing color splash to select it, then click on another color splash to mix them. This applies a p-SWAP gate between their qubits, modifying both colors based on their quantum interaction.
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Explore Entanglement: Mix multiple colors in different orders to create highly entangled quantum states. Notice how the resulting colors differ from classical mixing - the order of operations matters!
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Discard and Collapse: Drag a color splash to the trash bin to discard it. This performs a quantum measurement in the Z basis, collapsing the wavefunction. The outcome (|0⟩ or |1⟩) is chosen probabilistically based on the qubit state, simulating a quantum trajectory. Entangled colors will change accordingly!
Your project is live at: https://v0-quantum-palette.vercel.app
Continue building on: https://v0.app/chat/t9VvabRVGOU