Recently, there has been a growing interest in employing reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RISs) to improve the spectrum and energy efficiency of wireless networks. In RIS-assisted wireless networks, channel estimation and optimization is a difficult task, particularly for nearly passive RIS devices with low-complexity hardware design. We have proposed a hybrid classical-quantum computing framework that allows for ultra-fast optimization adapting to multipath wireless environments. The onsite optimization of RIS configuration can be performed almost instantaneously using only feedback (received power) at wireless endpoints. The performance of the proposed work is demonstrated in representative wireless propagation scenarios.
Recently, there has been a growing interest in employing reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RISs) to improve the spectrum and energy efficiency of wireless networks. In RIS-assisted wireless networks, channel estimation and optimization is a difficult task, particularly for nearly passive RIS devices with low-complexity hardware design. We have proposed a hybrid classical-quantum computing framework that allows for ultra-fast optimization adapting to multipath wireless environments. The onsite optimization of RIS configuration can be performed almost instantaneously using only feedback (received power) at wireless endpoints. The performance of the proposed work is demonstrated in representative wireless propagation scenarios.
Wireless communication technology has become important in modern life. Real-world radio environments present significant challenges, particularly concerning latency and multipath fading. A promising solution is represented by reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS), which can manipulate electromagnetic waves to enhance transmission quality. In this study, we introduce a novel approach that employs the quantum approximate optimization algorithm (QAOA) to efficiently configure RIS in multipath environments. Applying the spin glass (SG) theoretical framework to describe chaotic systems, along with a variable noise model, we propose a quantum-based minimization algorithm to optimize RIS in various electromagnetic scenarios affected by multipath fading. The method involves training a parameterized quantum circuit using a mathematical model that scales with the size of the RIS. When applied to different EM scenarios, it directly identifies the optimal RIS configuration. This approach eliminates the need for large datasets for training, validation, and testing, streamlines, and accelerates the training process. Furthermore, the algorithm will not need to be rerun for each individual scenario. In particular, our analysis considers a system with one transmitting antenna, multiple receiving antennas, and varying noise levels. The results show that QAOA enhances the performance of RIS in both noise-free and noisy environments, highlighting the potential of quantum computing to address the complexities of RIS optimization and improve the performance of the wireless network.
Sixth-generation (6G) wireless networks are expected to deliver transformative capabilities including ultra-reliable low-latency communications and massive connectivity. Reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RISs) have emerged as a key enabling technology by dynamically manipulating wireless propagation through programmable reflecting elements. However, accurate channel estimation in RIS-assisted networks faces significant challenges from cascaded channel structures, passive elements, and high-dimensional parameter spaces. Quantum machine learning (QML) offers a fundamentally different computational paradigm that may address these challenges through quantum properties. This article provides a tutorial overview of QML for channel estimation in RIS-assisted 6G networks. We present RIS-assisted system architectures and channel estimation challenges, introduce quantum computing fundamentals, and survey QML architectures. As a use case, we consider a hybrid quantum-classical framework, e.g., convolutional neural network (CNN)-quantum long short-term memory (QLSTM), for channel estimation in RIS-assisted non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) systems. This case study shows consistent accuracy improvements compared to quantum and classical benchmarks. Finally, we discuss implementation challenges and future research directions for practical deployment of quantum-enhanced wireless systems.
This study proposes the utilization of quantum machine learning (QML) to maximize the energy efficiency of reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) assisted communication with rate-splitting multiple access (RSMA). The next-generation wireless communications are expected to yield significantly higher energy efficiency compared to that of the previous generations. In a multiuser system, energy efficiency can be defined as a benefit-to-cost ratio between the achievable sum-rate and the energy consumption, where enhancements in the former come at the expense of increases in the latter. Recently, the integration between RSMA and RISs has been advocated as a powerful mean to control this tradeoff. Indeed, RSMA can enhance the rate region while RISs can lead to reduced energy consumption thanks to the use of low-energy phase shifters. However, optimizing a RIS-aided RSMA communication system is faced with a computational burden given that the RIS enlarges the volume of the required channel information, which expands the information that needs to be processed by the optimization module, even when the optimization is based on conventional learning techniques. The proposed QML optimization framework, which orchestrates non-linear quantum unitary operations to compose the learning models, enjoys information processing gains thanks to state vector operations in multi-dimensional Hilbert space. It is composed of two trainable quantum-based learning models employed in an alternating manner: the first establishes the transmission precoding, and the second designs the RIS phase shifting. Numerical results show that the proposed QML delivers comparable performance to that of conventional optimization but with reduced complexity.
Wireless communication systems play a pivotal role in modern society, yet they face significant challenges such as latency and multipath fading. Reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) is emerged as a promising solution to manipulate electromagnetic waves to enhance transmission quality, although their optimization presents several limitations. In this study, we propose a hybrid approach utilizing the quantum approximate optimization algorithm (QAOA) to effectively configure RIS in multipath environments, addressing the shortcomings of classical methods. The computational model trained by the Sherrington- Kirkpatrick Hamiltonian, demonstrates high accuracy in identifying optimal RIS configurations across various scenarios, without running optimization at each condition. However, the analysis of barren plateaus reveals that the cost function gradient diminishes exponentially as the number of cells increases, making hard the training for large-scale systems. To mitigate these issues, we conclude by suggesting some potential strategies for future research aimed at enhancing RIS performance in practical applications.
The escalating complexity and stringent performance demands of sixth-generation wireless systems necessitate advanced signal processing methods capable of simultaneously achieving high spectral efficiency and low computational complexity, especially under frequency-selective propagation conditions. In this paper, we propose a hybrid quantum-classical detection framework for broadband systems enhanced by reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RISs). We address the maximum likelihood detection (MLD) problem for RIS-aided broadband wireless communications by formulating it as a quadratic unconstrained binary optimization problem, that is then solved using Grover adaptive search (GAS). To accelerate convergence, we initialize the GAS algorithm with a threshold based on a classical minimum mean-squared error detector. The simulation results show that the proposed hybrid classical-quantum detection scheme achieves near-optimal MLD performance while substantially reducing query complexity. These findings highlight the potential of quantum-enhanced detection strategies combined with RIS technology, offering efficient and near-optimal solutions for broadband wireless communications.
Quantum-classical hybrid communication is emerging as a key enabler for future 6G networks, where THz communication and quantum services are expected to coexist over intelligent and reconfigurable wireless infrastructures. A fundamental challenge in such systems is that reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) phase control simultaneously influences classical communication performance and quantum-state evolution, making reliable entanglement preservation difficult in dynamic propagation environments. To address this challenge, this paper proposes an AI-native Entanglement-Sustained Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface (AI-ES-RIS) framework for hybrid quantum-classical THz communication. A unified model is developed to jointly characterize THz-wave propagation and Bell-state evolution through a phase-flip-inspired decoherence representation. To capture RIS-induced quantum degradation, a weighted mismatch-based decoherence model is introduced that links RIS phase perturbations, channel-dependent element significance, and entanglement fidelity degradation. Furthermore, a Proximal Policy Optimization (PPO)-based controller is designed to adapt RIS phase configurations by jointly optimizing communication reliability and quantum-state preservation. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed framework consistently achieves higher entanglement fidelity, lower decoherence probability, and competitive communication performance compared with communication-centric and model-based RIS optimization strategies. Distributional analysis further confirms improved quantum-state robustness across diverse channel realizations, while scalability studies demonstrate favorable runtime characteristics for larger RIS dimensions. Additional meta-learning and federated learning extensions show enhanced adaptation and convergence under heterogeneous propagation environments. The results establish that RIS control in hybrid quantum-classical networks should be treated as a joint communication-and-quantum optimization problem rather than as independent design objectives, providing a promising foundation for future THz-enabled quantum-aware 6G systems.