def empty_table(unique_database, request):
  """Create an empty table within the test database before executing test.

  The table will have the same name as the test_function itself. Setup and teardown
  of the database is handled by the unique_database fixture.

  Args:
    unique_database: pytest fixture defined in conftest.py
    request: standard pytest request fixture

  Returns:
    fq_table_name (str): the fully qualified name of the table: : dbname.table_name
  """
  table_name = request.node.name
  fq_table_name = '.'.join([unique_database, table_name])
  stmt = "CREATE TABLE %s (i integer, s string)" % fq_table_name
  request.instance.execute_query_expect_success(request.instance.client, stmt,
                                                query_options={'sync_ddl': 1})
  return fq_table_name