The vision of a quantum internet is to fundamentally enhance Internet technology by enabling quantum communication between any two points on Earth. While the first realisations of small scale quantum networks are expected in the near future, scaling such networks presents immense challenges to physics, computer science and engineering. Here, we provide a gentle introduction to quantum networking targeted at computer scientists, and survey the state of the art. We proceed to discuss key challenges for computer science in order to make such networks a reality.
The vision of a quantum internet is to fundamentally enhance Internet technology by enabling quantum communication between any two points on Earth. While the first realisations of small scale quantum networks are expected in the near future, scaling such networks presents immense challenges to physics, computer science and engineering. Here, we provide a gentle introduction to quantum networking targeted at computer scientists, and survey the state of the art. We proceed to discuss key challenges for computer science in order to make such networks a reality.
Following the emergence of quantum computing, the subsequent quantum revolution will be that of interconnecting individual quantum computers at global level. In the same way that classical computers only realised their full potential with the emergence of the internet, a fully realised quantum internet is the next stage of evolution for quantum computation. This work examines in detail how the quantum internet would evolve in practice, focusing not only on the technology itself but also on the implications it will have economically and politically. We present both original ideas, as well as an extensive review of relevant and related background material. This work begins with a description of classical networks before introducing the key concepts behind quantum networks, such as quantum internet protocols, quantum cryptography, and cloud quantum computing. The work is divided into technical sections (requiring only a basic knowledge of the notation of quantum mechanics), for those interested in mathematical details, as well as non-technical sections for those seeking a more general understanding. We target this work very broadly at quantum and classical computer scientists, classical computer systems, software and network engineers, physicists, economists, artists, musicians, and those just generally curious about the future of quantum technologies and what they might bring to humanity.
Quantum networks play a pivotal role in quantum information science, which not only provide a secure communication platform for remote access to quantum computers but also serve as the strategic core for achieving large-scale quantum information processing, forming the foundational infrastructure for the future global-scale quantum internet. Quantum teleportation, which enables the transmission of unknown quantum states over long distances by employing quantum entanglement together with classical communication, is essential for the distribution of quantum resources in the construction of the global-scale quantum internet. To realize a global-scale quantum internet, quantum repeater protocols represent one of the most promising approaches for enabling quantum communication between any nodes. This concise review presents representative experimental demonstrations of quantum teleportation for constructing quantum networks across different physical platforms. Along this trajectory, the review discusses current challenges, open issues, and future perspectives toward scalable and practical quantum internet.
Driven by the rapid progress in quantum hardware, recent years have witnessed a furious race for quantum technologies in both academia and industry. Universal quantum computers have supported up to hundreds of qubits, while the scale of quantum annealers has reached three orders of magnitude (i.e., thousands of qubits). Quantum computing power keeps climbing. Race has consequently generated an overwhelming number of research papers and documents. This article provides an entry point for interested readers to learn the key aspects of quantum computing and communications from a computer science perspective. It begins with a pedagogical introduction and then reviews the key milestones and recent advances in quantum computing. In this article, the key elements of a quantum Internet are categorized into four important issues, which are investigated in detail: a) quantum computers, b) quantum networks, c) quantum cryptography, and d) quantum machine learning. Finally, the article identifies and discusses the main barriers, the major research directions, and trends.
The quantum internet is envisaged to connect quantum systems at a global scale to provide diverse applications unimaginable with the classical internet. However, the technological shortcomings and practical challenges of noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) devices impose several constraints on the vision of a truly global quantum internet. Recent experimental developments for quantum networks are laying the pathway from small-scale to intermediate-scale noisy quantum networks dedicated to specific operational tasks. Although these networks are not at the global scale, they are capable of providing a clear quantum advantage in their dedicated tasks. We explore the cardinal features of these NISQ networks, discuss their design constraints, and explore the possible applications they provide. We also outline some technical challenges that need to be addressed for the practical implementation of these networks and eventually lead toward a truly global, fully functional quantum internet.
Following the emergence of quantum computing, the subsequent quantum revolution will be that of interconnecting individual quantum computers at the global level. In the same way that classical computers only realised their full potential with the emergence of the internet, a fully-realised quantum internet is the next stage of evolution for quantum computation. This cutting-edge book examines in detail how the quantum internet would evolve in practise, focusing not only on the technology itself, but also the implications it will have economically and politically, with numerous non-technical sections throughout the text providing broader context to the discussion. The book begins with a description of classical networks before introducing the key concepts behind quantum networks, such as quantum internet protocols, quantum cryptography, and cloud quantum computing. Written in an engaging style and accessible to graduate students in physics, engineering, computer science and mathematics.
Based on quantum mechanics, quantum communications have clock synchronization properties and unbreakable security. Recently, related technologies of quantum communications have made breakthroughs one after another, and it has also realized functions and applications that are difficult to achieve in traditional networks. In this era of the rise of quantum networks similar to the eve of the birth of the classical Internet “Arpanet,” researchers are full of longing for the blueprint of the future quantum network. In this work, we summarize, analyze and look forward to quantum communications and networking compared with the traditional Internet. Specifically, the related fundamentals, related technological developments, and existing challenges of quantum networks are firstly analyzed. On this basis, we look ahead and propose a prototype of the future quantum network architectures. Finally, we sort out and analyze the paradigm, principle, and properties of quantum communications. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first review and vision work on quantum communications and networking.