An approximation algorithm for approximation rank

One of the strongest techniques available for showing lower bounds on quantum communication complexity is the logarithm of the approximation rank of the communication matrix--the minimum rank of a matrix which is entrywise close to the communication matrix. This technique has two main drawbacks: it is difficult to compute, and it is not known to lower bound quantum communication complexity with entanglement. Linial and Shraibman recently introduced a norm, called gamma2^{alpha}, to quantum communication complexity, showing that it can be used to lower bound communication with entanglement. Here the parameter alpha is a measure of approximation which is related to the allowable error probability of the protocol. This bound can be written as a semidefinite program and gives bounds at least as large as many techniques in the literature, although it is smaller than the corresponding alpha-approximation rank, rkalpha. We show that in fact log gamma2^{alpha}(A)$ and log rk{alpha}(A)$ agree up to small factors. As corollaries we obtain a constant factor polynomial time approximation algorithm to the logarithm of approximate rank, and that the logarithm of approximation rank is a lower bound for quantum communication complexity with entanglement.