To fulfill their promise, quantum networks must transform from isolated testbeds into scalable infrastructures for distributed quantum applications. In this paper, we present a prototype orchestrator for the Argonne Quantum Network (ArQNet) testbed that leverages design principles of software-defined networking (SDN) to automate typical quantum communication experiments across buildings in the Argonne campus connected over deployed, telecom fiber. Our implementation validates a scalable architecture supporting service-level abstraction of quantum networking tasks, distributed time synchronization, and entanglement verification across remote nodes. We present a prototype service of continuous, stable entanglement distribution between remote sites that ran for 12 hours, which defines a promising path towards scalable quantum networks.
To fulfill their promise, quantum networks must transform from isolated testbeds into scalable infrastructures for distributed quantum applications. In this paper, we present a prototype orchestrator for the Argonne Quantum Network (ArQNet) testbed that leverages design principles of software-defined networking (SDN) to automate typical quantum communication experiments across buildings in the Argonne campus connected over deployed, telecom fiber. Our implementation validates a scalable architecture supporting service-level abstraction of quantum networking tasks, distributed time synchronization, and entanglement verification across remote nodes. We present a prototype service of continuous, stable entanglement distribution between remote sites that ran for 12 hours, which defines a promising path towards scalable quantum networks.
Near-term quantum networks will require a framework for requesting the distribution of entanglement between remote parties. Centralized controllers that provide an interface to users, while orchestrating the functionalities of quantum devices and systems in the network have been proposed to achieve this goal. In this paper, we report our experiences on developing an on-demand entanglement service coexisting with classical traffic over a quantum local area network (Q-LAN) testbed. Our Q-LAN testbed is located at Argonne National Laboratory campus, and it is composed of deployed fiber optics links interconnect commercial quantum and classical networking equipment. We utilize an empirical model to determine the configuration parameters of a commercial entangled photon source (EPS), given the requested coincidence-to-accidental ratio (CAR) and knowledge of the power levels of classical traffic on the network. We delineate our approach towards building an orchestrator based on this model and report our results attained up to this point. Future research aims to extend remote entanglement capabilities, improve timing synchronization, and enhance communications across multiple nodes, further advancing the practical deployment of quantum network technologies.
Quantum network is a research topic involving fundamental quantum information science, engineering designs, and experimental implementations. Existing research works primarily pertain to theoretical architecture designs and proof-of-concept experimental demonstrations. With the recent developments in engineering quantum systems, the realization of scalable local-area quantum networks has become viable. However, the design and implementation of a quantum network is a holistic task that is way beyond the scope of an abstract design problem. As such, a testbed on which multiple disciplines can verify the design and implementation across a full networking stack has become a necessary infrastructure for the future development of quantum networks. In this work, we demonstrate the concept of quantum internet service provider (QISP), in analogy to the conventional ISP that allows for the sharing of classical information between the network nodes. The QISP is significant for the next-generation quantum networks as it coordinates the production, management, control, and sharing of quantum information across the end-users of a quantum network. We construct a reconfigurable QISP comprising both the quantum hardware and classical control software. Building on the fiber-based quantum-network testbed of the Center for Quantum Networks (CQN) at the University of Arizona (UA), we develop an integrated QISP prototype based on a Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) architecture, whose classical control software is abstracted and modularized as an open-source QISP framework. To verify and characterize the QISP's performance, we demonstrate multi-channel entanglement distribution and routing among multiple quantum-network nodes with a time-energy entangled-photon source. We further perform field tests of concurrent services for multiple users across the quantum-network testbed. Our experiment demonstrates the robust capabilities of the QISP, laying the foundation for the design and verification of architectures and protocols for future quantum networks.
ABSTRACT Quantum networks development is crucial to realizing a production‐grade network that can support distributed sensing, secure communication, and utility‐scale quantum computation. However, the transition from laboratory demonstration to deployable networks requires software implementations of architectures and protocols tailored to the unique constraints of quantum systems. This paper reviews the current state of software implementations for quantum networks, organized around a three‐plane abstraction of infrastructure, logical, and control/service planes. We cover software for both designing quantum network protocols (e.g., SeQUeNCe, QuISP, and NetSquid) and operating testbeds, with a focus on essential control/service plane functions such as entanglement, topology, and resource management, in a proposed taxonomy. Our review highlights a persistent gap between theoretical architecture and protocol proposals and their realization in simulators or testbeds, particularly in dynamic topology and network management. We conclude by outlining open challenges and proposing a roadmap for developing scalable software architectures to enable hybrid, large‐scale quantum networks.
Secure communication is essential for modern society, from financial transactions to critical infrastructure. As classical encryption faces threats from advancing computational power, quantum communication provides a fundamentally secure alternative based on physical laws.
We present QuaNTUM (Quantum Network at the Technical University of Munich), a modular and extensible quantum communication testbed enabling scalable experiments across fiber-based campus networks and satellite-ground links. The terrestrial network connects research institutions in Garching near Munich via single-mode fibers in a star topology with polarization-maintaining components, multiplexers, and time-synchronized analysis modules. Active polarization control and real-time feedback support stable qubit transmission for high-fidelity quantum key distribution and entanglement distribution.
A key feature is the integration of deterministic solid-state single-photon sources, including defects in hexagonal boron nitride and excited erbium atoms, with initial deployments on small satellites to bridge terrestrial and free-space channels. As an open-access platform, QuaNTUM enables protocol development, device benchmarking, and hybrid network research, providing a foundation for scalable quantum communication and future global quantum networks.
As quantum computing continues to progress, there is an increasing need for standardized quantum network technology [1], [2] to connect quantum computers together. Experimental testbeds are necessary in order to develop quantum network software and hardware. Building a scalable testbed for data center-level quantum networks requires overcoming numerous engineering and technical challenges in quantum communications, quantum processing and quantum storage. In this work, we describe a software framework for use with an all-photonic quantum networking testbed. This framework is designed for rapid development and capable of automated execution of quantum experiments. We introduce PnPQ, an open-source, unified driver library for hardware commonly used in quantum optical experiments. On top of this low-level hardware control library, we present software modules for controlling and coordinating quantum network nodes using remote procedure calls (RPC). Finally, we describe high-level software for performing and analyzing quantum photonic experiments using these software modules. As a whole, these software components comprise the first version of a framework that will enable us to implement and test quantum network architectures. This framework is intended to help us move forward from building simple experiments to complex Quantum systems.
Quantum networks are needed for quantum domain applications that may run across different network deployments - point-to-point, multi-node networks, and possibly across inter-domain quantum networks, like the quantum internet. Unlike classical computing networks, quantum networks involve heterogeneous systems nodes that currently require local and manual control. This needs a unified control approach to help them integrate, work seamlessly, and have global knowledge. Software-defined Networking (SDN) has been successfully leveraged in classical networking for seamless and software-driven control of network infrastructure and packet switching, but not in management of quantum network applications across heterogeneous systems. In this paper, we review the current state of the art and present early developments of a System-of-Systems Software-defined Quantum Networking architecture (SoS-SDQN), a generic architecture that supports software-driven quantum network experiments across heterogeneous quantum systems. The architecture modifies the generic SDN to address the domain requirements of quantum networks and proposes a multilevel SDQN to provide a global view of network status, running applications, and control of incorporated heterogeneous quantum systems. We also design and implement a SoS SouthBound Quantum Interface (SoS-SBQI), a quantum infrastructure protocol that abstracts automation of applications across the network.