Scaling Laws of Quantum Networks: An Entanglement Transport Framework

Abstract

As quantum networks move toward multi-user architectures, a central question is how the performance of entanglement distribution scales with the numbers of network nodes $N$ and active users $M$, yet existing studies use different objectives, resource assumptions, and normalizations. To account for delivery distance under multi-user demand, we define entanglement transport, which weights each delivered Bell pair meeting a fixed fidelity threshold by its endpoint separation. In a two-layer framework, (i) a resource layer measures capacity per activation slot under different aggregation regimes, and (ii) a physical layer measures service per second under implementation constraints. For matched implementations with a bounded number of activation slots per second, asymptotic-aggregation capacity sets a service ceiling, whereas achievable service must be established separately. On expanding honeycomb lattices with one random session, fixed-window entanglement-percolation constructions achieve $Θ(N^{-1})$ entanglement transport per activation slot below their thresholds and $Θ(\sqrt N)$ above them. For homogeneous chains, asymptotic aggregation exceeds fixed-window capacity by a factor $Θ(N^2/M)$, and in spatial expansion a noisy physical implementation achieves $Θ(M/N)$ service per second. These examples show that entanglement-transport scaling depends not only on connectivity but also on resource aggregation and physical implementation. The framework provides a common basis on which quantum-network scaling laws can be established.