Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

Neuromorphic Computing and Engineering

Edge to quantum: hybrid quantum-spiking neural network image classifier

Aswathy Ajayan, Alex Pappachen James

Published Aug 12, 2021• 16 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Abstract The extreme parallelism property warrant convergence of neural networks with that of quantum computing. As the size of the network grows, the classical implementation of neural networks becomes computationally expensive and not feasible. In this paper, we propose a hybrid image classifier model using spiking neural networks (SNN) and quantum circuits that combines dynamic behaviour of SNN with the extreme parallelism offered by quantum computing. The proposed model outperforms models in comparison with spiking neural network in classical computing, and hybrid convolution neural network-quantum circuit models in terms of various performance parameters. The proposed hybrid SNN-QC model achieves an accuracy of 99.9% in comparison with CNN-QC model accuracy of 96.3%, and SNN model of accuracy 91.2% in MNIST classification task. The tests on KMNIST and CIFAR-1O also showed improvements.

DOI
10.1088/2634-4386/ac1cec

Related papers

Hybrid Classic-Quantum Neural Networks for Image Classification

Yevhenii Trochun, Sergii Stirenko, Oleksandr Rokovyi +3 more

In the last decade, quantum computing (QC) has shown its great potential in advancing research in many fields. Here we introduce a new quantum-classical neural network, by combining quantum computing and classical computing in a hybrid neural network (HNN) that can be trained to perform image classification. The HNN on the basis of the classic convolutional neural network (CNN) with quantum circuit is considered for image classification problem. The various configurations of HNN were investigated where QC with different number of qubits were used and compared. The HNN configurations were trained, validated, and tested on the more complex CIFAR10 and CIFAR100 datasets in addition to our previous attempts on the simpler MNIST, notMNIST, MNIST Fashion datasets. Performance of HNN was compared for multiclass classification on these datasets for different number of classes (from 2 to 10) using QCs with correspondent number of qubits (from 2 to 4). The metrics measured (accuracy and loss) during these experiments support our assumption about feasibility of HNN application for multiclass classification problems.

IEEE International Conference on Intelligent Data Acquisition and Advanced Computing Systems: Technology and Applications (IDAACS)•Sep 22, 2021•21 citations

Quantum machine learning for image classification

Arsenii Senokosov, Alexandr Sedykh, Asel Sagingalieva +2 more

Abstract Image classification, a pivotal task in multiple industries, faces computational challenges due to the burgeoning volume of visual data. This research addresses these challenges by introducing two quantum machine learning models that leverage the principles of quantum mechanics for effective computations. Our first model, a hybrid quantum neural network with parallel quantum circuits, enables the execution of computations even in the noisy intermediate-scale quantum era, where circuits with a large number of qubits are currently infeasible. This model demonstrated a record-breaking classification accuracy of 99.21% on the full MNIST dataset, surpassing the performance of known quantum–classical models, while having eight times fewer parameters than its classical counterpart. Also, the results of testing this hybrid model on a Medical MNIST (classification accuracy over 99%), and on CIFAR-10 (classification accuracy over 82%), can serve as evidence of the generalizability of the model and highlights the efficiency of quantum layers in distinguishing common features of input data. Our second model introduces a hybrid quantum neural network with a Quanvolutional layer, reducing image resolution via a convolution process. The model matches the performance of its classical counterpart, having four times fewer trainable parameters, and outperforms a classical model with equal weight parameters. These models represent advancements in quantum machine learning research and illuminate the path towards more accurate image classification systems.

arXiv:2304.09224•Machine Learning Science and Technology•Feb 20, 2024•181 citations

Deep Spiking Quantum Neural Network for Noisy Image Classification

Debanjan Konar, Vaneet Aggarwal, Aditya Das Sarma +3 more

Recently, quantum machine learning has been ap-plied to stochastic-based modelling, promising that the inherent uncertainty in quantum computing will be a significant advan-tage, driving neuromorphic computing research to new heights. Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs) and their neuromorphic are gaining popularity due to their inherent ability to process spatial and temporal data. However, learning the interconnection weights is daunting due to the inherent stochastic characteristics of neuron signals and the inherent non-differentiable spike events in classical SNN. This paper introduces a supervised Deep Spiking Quantum Neural Network (DSQ-Net) using a hybrid quantum- classical architecture having the merits of amplitude encoding in a dressed quantum layer. A novel attempt has been made to obviate the challenges in training a classical deep SNN, assisted by a Variational Quantum Circuit (VQC) in the proposed hy-brid quantum-classical framework. The DSQ-Net has undergone thorough validation and benchmarking procedures using the PennyLane Quantum Simulator and the limited volume real IBM Quantum hardware. The experiments have been conducted on images from the MNIST, FashionMNIST, KMNIST, and CIFAR-I0 datasets. Classification accuracy has been reported in the high nineties for unseen noisy test images using the proposed DSQ-Net model on the quantum simulator. It outper-forms its classical counterpart (Deep Spiking Neural Networks), shallow Random Quantum Neural Networks (RQNN), Quantum Superposition-inspired Spiking Neural Networks (SQIN), ResNet- 18, and AlexNet. The PyTorch implementation of DSQ-Net is made available on Github11https://anonymous.4open.science/r/DSQ-Net-037E,

International Joint Conference on Neural Networks (IJCNN)•Jun 18, 2023•13 citations

Hybrid Quantum–Classical Neural Networks for Efficient MNIST Binary Image Classification

Deepak Ranga, Sunil Prajapat, Zahid Akhtar +2 more

Image classification is a fundamental task in deep learning, and recent advances in quantum computing have generated significant interest in quantum neural networks. Traditionally, Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) are employed to extract image features, while Multilayer Perceptrons (MLPs) handle decision making. However, parameterized quantum circuits offer the potential to capture complex image features and define sophisticated decision boundaries. In this paper, we present a novel Hybrid Quantum–Classical Neural Network (H-QNN) for image classification, and demonstrate its effectiveness using the MNIST dataset. Our model combines quantum computing with classical supervised learning to enhance classification accuracy and computational efficiency. In this study, we detail the architecture of the H-QNN, emphasizing its capability in feature learning and image classification. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed H-QNN model outperforms conventional deep learning methods in various training scenarios, showcasing its effectiveness in high-dimensional image classification tasks. Additionally, we explore the broader applicability of hybrid quantum–classical approaches in other domains. Our findings contribute to the growing body of work in quantum machine learning, and underscore the potential of quantum-enhanced models for image recognition and classification.

Mathematics•Nov 24, 2024•32 citations

A Hybrid Quantum–Classical Convolutional Neural Network for Enhanced Image Classification

D. Deepika, K Vanishree, Munishamaiah Krishna

The objective of this research is to develop a Hybrid Quantum-Classical Convolutional Neural Network (QC-CNN) framework that integrates parameterized quantum circuits (PQCs) within classical CNN architectures to enhance image classification performance.The proposed model leverages quantum principles such as superposition and entanglement for high-dimensional feature representation, achieving superior accuracy and reduced computational complexity.Experiments on MNIST and CIFAR-10 datasets demonstrated improved classification accuracy of 98.7% and 82.5%, respectively, surpassing traditional CNNs while reducing training time by 33% and parameters by 45%.Statistical analysis confirmed the significance of these improvements.Visualizations using t-SNE revealed enhanced class separability, and noise perturbation tests validated the model's robustness.The results highlight the hybrid QC-CNN's potential for efficient and scalable quantum-enhanced deep learning applications.Extended evaluations, including quantum-layer-depth analysis, robustness testing, and t-SNE visualization, empirically support the hybrid QC-CNN's effectiveness across varied scenarios.

International Journal of Computer Applications•Dec 18, 2025•0 citations

Design and Implementation of Quantum Kernel Convolution for Hybrid Neural Networks

Erdem Şeker, Yusuf Kağan Bayraktaroğlu, Deniz Eren Çam +2 more

Classical convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have achieved notable success in image classification but face challenges in scalability, interpretability, and computational cost. With the growing availability of Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum (NISQ) devices, hybrid quantum-classical models offer a promising alternative by leveraging quantum parallelism and entanglement. In this work, we present a hybrid Quantum Convolutional Neural Network (QCNN) that integrates quantum convolutional layers into classical image classification pipeline for the MNIST dataset. Our architecture features a modular, low-depth Quantum Kernel Convolution (QKC) design suitable for near-term hardware. We implement the system using Qiskit and evaluate in terms of classification accuracy, circuit efficiency, and integration feasibility. Our results demonstrate that (i) the hybrid QCNN achieves similar accuracy to classical models while reducing the number of classical parameters, and (ii) quantum layers can successfully perform dimensionality reduction through entanglement-based pooling. This study highlights the potential of hybrid QCNN as a practical quantum-enhanced model for real-world image recognition tasks.

•Sep 17, 2025•1 citation
Abstract The extreme parallelism property warrant convergence of neural networks with that of quantum computing. As the size of the network grows, the classical implementation of neural networks becomes computationally expensive and not feasible. In this paper, we propose a hybrid image classifier model using spiking neural networks (SNN) and quantum circuits that combines dynamic behaviour of SNN with the extreme parallelism offered by quantum computing. The proposed model outperforms models in comparison with spiking neural network in classical computing, and hybrid convolution neural network-quantum circuit models in terms of various performance parameters. The proposed hybrid SNN-QC model achieves an accuracy of 99.9% in comparison with CNN-QC model accuracy of 96.3%, and SNN model of accuracy 91.2% in MNIST classification task. The tests on KMNIST and CIFAR-1O also showed improvements.
In the last decade, quantum computing (QC) has shown its great potential in advancing research in many fields. Here we introduce a new quantum-classical neural network, by combining quantum computing and classical computing in a hybrid neural network (HNN) that can be trained to perform image classification. The HNN on the basis of the classic convolutional neural network (CNN) with quantum circuit is considered for image classification problem. The various configurations of HNN were investigated where QC with different number of qubits were used and compared. The HNN configurations were trained, validated, and tested on the more complex CIFAR10 and CIFAR100 datasets in addition to our previous attempts on the simpler MNIST, notMNIST, MNIST Fashion datasets. Performance of HNN was compared for multiclass classification on these datasets for different number of classes (from 2 to 10) using QCs with correspondent number of qubits (from 2 to 4). The metrics measured (accuracy and loss) during these experiments support our assumption about feasibility of HNN application for multiclass classification problems.
Abstract Image classification, a pivotal task in multiple industries, faces computational challenges due to the burgeoning volume of visual data. This research addresses these challenges by introducing two quantum machine learning models that leverage the principles of quantum mechanics for effective computations. Our first model, a hybrid quantum neural network with parallel quantum circuits, enables the execution of computations even in the noisy intermediate-scale quantum era, where circuits with a large number of qubits are currently infeasible. This model demonstrated a record-breaking classification accuracy of 99.21% on the full MNIST dataset, surpassing the performance of known quantum–classical models, while having eight times fewer parameters than its classical counterpart. Also, the results of testing this hybrid model on a Medical MNIST (classification accuracy over 99%), and on CIFAR-10 (classification accuracy over 82%), can serve as evidence of the generalizability of the model and highlights the efficiency of quantum layers in distinguishing common features of input data. Our second model introduces a hybrid quantum neural network with a Quanvolutional layer, reducing image resolution via a convolution process. The model matches the performance of its classical counterpart, having four times fewer trainable parameters, and outperforms a classical model with equal weight parameters. These models represent advancements in quantum machine learning research and illuminate the path towards more accurate image classification systems.
Recently, quantum machine learning has been ap-plied to stochastic-based modelling, promising that the inherent uncertainty in quantum computing will be a significant advan-tage, driving neuromorphic computing research to new heights. Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs) and their neuromorphic are gaining popularity due to their inherent ability to process spatial and temporal data. However, learning the interconnection weights is daunting due to the inherent stochastic characteristics of neuron signals and the inherent non-differentiable spike events in classical SNN. This paper introduces a supervised Deep Spiking Quantum Neural Network (DSQ-Net) using a hybrid quantum- classical architecture having the merits of amplitude encoding in a dressed quantum layer. A novel attempt has been made to obviate the challenges in training a classical deep SNN, assisted by a Variational Quantum Circuit (VQC) in the proposed hy-brid quantum-classical framework. The DSQ-Net has undergone thorough validation and benchmarking procedures using the PennyLane Quantum Simulator and the limited volume real IBM Quantum hardware. The experiments have been conducted on images from the MNIST, FashionMNIST, KMNIST, and CIFAR-I0 datasets. Classification accuracy has been reported in the high nineties for unseen noisy test images using the proposed DSQ-Net model on the quantum simulator. It outper-forms its classical counterpart (Deep Spiking Neural Networks), shallow Random Quantum Neural Networks (RQNN), Quantum Superposition-inspired Spiking Neural Networks (SQIN), ResNet- 18, and AlexNet. The PyTorch implementation of DSQ-Net is made available on Github11https://anonymous.4open.science/r/DSQ-Net-037E,
Image classification is a fundamental task in deep learning, and recent advances in quantum computing have generated significant interest in quantum neural networks. Traditionally, Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) are employed to extract image features, while Multilayer Perceptrons (MLPs) handle decision making. However, parameterized quantum circuits offer the potential to capture complex image features and define sophisticated decision boundaries. In this paper, we present a novel Hybrid Quantum–Classical Neural Network (H-QNN) for image classification, and demonstrate its effectiveness using the MNIST dataset. Our model combines quantum computing with classical supervised learning to enhance classification accuracy and computational efficiency. In this study, we detail the architecture of the H-QNN, emphasizing its capability in feature learning and image classification. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed H-QNN model outperforms conventional deep learning methods in various training scenarios, showcasing its effectiveness in high-dimensional image classification tasks. Additionally, we explore the broader applicability of hybrid quantum–classical approaches in other domains. Our findings contribute to the growing body of work in quantum machine learning, and underscore the potential of quantum-enhanced models for image recognition and classification.
The objective of this research is to develop a Hybrid Quantum-Classical Convolutional Neural Network (QC-CNN) framework that integrates parameterized quantum circuits (PQCs) within classical CNN architectures to enhance image classification performance.The proposed model leverages quantum principles such as superposition and entanglement for high-dimensional feature representation, achieving superior accuracy and reduced computational complexity.Experiments on MNIST and CIFAR-10 datasets demonstrated improved classification accuracy of 98.7% and 82.5%, respectively, surpassing traditional CNNs while reducing training time by 33% and parameters by 45%.Statistical analysis confirmed the significance of these improvements.Visualizations using t-SNE revealed enhanced class separability, and noise perturbation tests validated the model's robustness.The results highlight the hybrid QC-CNN's potential for efficient and scalable quantum-enhanced deep learning applications.Extended evaluations, including quantum-layer-depth analysis, robustness testing, and t-SNE visualization, empirically support the hybrid QC-CNN's effectiveness across varied scenarios.
Classical convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have achieved notable success in image classification but face challenges in scalability, interpretability, and computational cost. With the growing availability of Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum (NISQ) devices, hybrid quantum-classical models offer a promising alternative by leveraging quantum parallelism and entanglement. In this work, we present a hybrid Quantum Convolutional Neural Network (QCNN) that integrates quantum convolutional layers into classical image classification pipeline for the MNIST dataset. Our architecture features a modular, low-depth Quantum Kernel Convolution (QKC) design suitable for near-term hardware. We implement the system using Qiskit and evaluate in terms of classification accuracy, circuit efficiency, and integration feasibility. Our results demonstrate that (i) the hybrid QCNN achieves similar accuracy to classical models while reducing the number of classical parameters, and (ii) quantum layers can successfully perform dimensionality reduction through entanglement-based pooling. This study highlights the potential of hybrid QCNN as a practical quantum-enhanced model for real-world image recognition tasks.