  In this paper we consider the problem of unambiguous discrimination between a
set of linearly independent pure quantum states. We show that the design of the
optimal measurement that minimizes the probability of an inconclusive result
can be formulated as a semidefinite programming problem. Based on this
formulation, we develop a set of necessary and sufficient conditions for an
optimal quantum measurement. We show that the optimal measurement can be
computed very efficiently in polynomial time by exploiting the many well-known
algorithms for solving semidefinite programs, which are guaranteed to converge
to the global optimum.
  Using the general conditions for optimality, we derive necessary and
sufficient conditions so that the measurement that results in an equal
probability of an inconclusive result for each one of the quantum states is
optimal. We refer to this measurement as the equal-probability measurement
(EPM). We then show that for any state set, the prior probabilities of the
states can be chosen such that the EPM is optimal.
  Finally, we consider state sets with strong symmetry properties and equal
prior probabilities for which the EPM is optimal. We first consider
geometrically uniform state sets that are defined over a group of unitary
matrices and are generated by a single generating vector. We then consider
compound geometrically uniform state sets which are generated by a group of
unitary matrices using multiple generating vectors, where the generating
vectors satisfy a certain (weighted) norm constraint.
