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

IEEE Military Communications Conference (MILCOM)

Computational Simulation Framework for Tactical Quantum Network Applications

Dashiell L. P. Vitullo, Trevor Cook, Daniel E. Jones, Lisa Scott, Brian T. Kirby

Published Oct 30, 2023• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Quantum networks in their most general configuration consist of nodes, containing sources, detectors, memories, and logic gates, connected by both quantum and classical channels. Quantum networks leverage the unique properties of quantum mechanics to enable "beyond classical" communication, sensing, and computing protocols. The research community has recently emphasized computational simulation of these networks as an approach to gauging their performance, understanding their properties, and considering the impact of technical standards. Despite this, the implications of quantum networks in military contexts with limited resources remains underexplored. We review a recently introduced quantum network simulation framework that we developed, named QuanTACT, that is specifically tailored for integration into existing tactical simulation tools, such as the Extendable Mobile Ad hoc Network Emulator (EMANE). The QuanTACT framework is built from the SQUANCH quantum network simulation tool by adding quantum channel models for optical fiber and various subroutines required for entanglement-based QKD simulation such as key sifting, information reconciliation, and privacy amplification. Our choice of SQUANCH as opposed to other quantum network simulation tools is due to the agent-based model utilized by SQUANCH which allows for fully parallelized simulations with multiple agents running their own processes. This distributed architecture is, by design, consistent with EMANE and facilitates future integration. Building off of benchmark results based on field-deployed QKD experiments, we investigate the computational scaling properties of this system for linear chains of nodes that exchange keys via an XOR operation.

DOI
10.1109/milcom58377.2023.10356337

Related papers

Simulating quantum key distribution in fiber-based quantum networks

Dashiell L. P. Vitullo, Trevor Cook, Daniel E. Jones +3 more

Quantum networks exploit the unique properties of quantum mechanics to enable communication and networking tasks unavailable to existing distributed classical systems. Recently, the research community has focused considerable effort on the simulation of large-scale quantum networks with the ultimate goal of understanding their general properties, developing technical standards, and estimating their expected performance. However, comparatively little effort has been spent considering how quantum networks may impact tactical scenarios of military relevance where both quantum and classical resources may be severely constrained. Here, we develop a custom framework, called QuanTACT, for quantum network simulation explicitly designed for future integration into existing tactical simulation tools. In particular, our framework extends the existing quantum networking tool, SQUANCH, to include channel models required to simulate deployed fiber environments. Furthermore, we implement the additional subroutines needed to simulate entanglement-based quantum key distribution (QKD) and use published results from various field-deployed QKD experiments to benchmark the performance of our framework.

The Journal of Defense Modeling and Simulation Applications Methodology Technology•Apr 7, 2023•8 citations

Simulation of Quantum Key Distribution Using Entangled Photon Pairs Over Free-Space Channels

Daniel E. Jones, Dashiell L. P. Vitullo, Trevor Cook +3 more

We develop a quantum network simulation framework designed for integration into tactical simulation tools. It extends the quantum networking tool SQUANCH with realistic fiber and free-space channel models and implements subroutines for simulating entanglement-based QKD. We benchmark our framework using a published free-space QKD experiment.

IEEE Photonics Conference•Nov 1, 2022•1 citation

An Extensible Quantum Network Simulator Built on ns-3: Q2NS Design and Evaluation

Adam Pearson, Francesco Mazza, Marcello Caleffi +1 more

As quantum networking hardware remains costly and not yet widely accessible, simulation tools are essential for the design and evaluation of quantum network architectures and protocols. However, designing a scalable and computationally efficient quantum network simulator is intrinsically challenging: (i) quantum dynamics must be emulated on classical computing platforms while capturing the stateful and non-local nature of entanglement, a unique quantum resource without any classical networking analog; (ii) moreover, quantum networking is inherently hybrid, as protocol execution also fundamentally depends on classical signaling. This makes a tight and faithful co-simulation of quantum operations and classical message exchanges a core requirement. In this light, we present Q2NS, a modular and extensible quantum network simulator, built on top of ns-3, designed to seamlessly integrate quantum-network primitives with ns-3’s established classical protocol stack. Q2NS adopts a modular architecture that decouples protocol control logic from node- and channel-level operations, enabling rapid prototyping and adaptation across heterogeneous and evolving Quantum Internet scenarios. Q2NS natively supports multiple quantum state representations through a unified plug-in interface, allowing interchangeable state-vector, density-matrix, and stabilizer backends. We validate Q2NS through realistic use-case studies and comprehensive benchmarks, demonstrating superior computational efficiency over representative state-of-the-art alternatives, while preserving modeling flexibility. Finally, we provide a dedicated visualization tool that jointly captures physical and entanglement-enabled connectivity and supports entangled-state manipulations, facilitating an intuitive interpretation of entanglement dynamics and protocol behavior. Overall, Q2NS offers a flexible, open, and scalable simulation platform for advancing Quantum Internet research.

Computer Networks•Apr 3, 2026•0 citations

An Extensible Quantum Network Simulator Built on ns-3: Q2NS Design and Evaluation

Adam Pearson, Francesco Mazza, Marcello Caleffi +1 more

As quantum networking hardware remains costly and not yet widely accessible, simulation tools are essential for the design and evaluation of quantum network architectures and protocols. However, designing a scalable and computationally efficient quantum network simulator is intrinsically challenging: i) quantum dynamics must be emulated on classical computing platforms while capturing the stateful and non-local nature of entanglement, a quantum resource without any classical networking analog; ii) quantum networking is inherently hybrid, as protocol execution also fundamentally depends on classical signaling. This makes a tight and faithful co-simulation of quantum operations and classical message exchanges a core requirement. In this light, we present Q2NS, a modular and extensible quantum network simulator, built on top of ns-3, designed to seamlessly integrate quantum-network primitives with ns-3's established classical protocol stack. Q2NS adopts a modular architecture that decouples protocol control logic from node- and channel-level operations, enabling rapid prototyping and adaptation across heterogeneous and evolving Quantum Internet scenarios. Q2NS natively supports multiple quantum state representations through a unified interface, allowing interchangeable state-vector, density-matrix, and stabilizer backends. We validate Q2NS through realistic use-case studies and comprehensive benchmarks, demonstrating superior computational efficiency over representative state-of-the-art alternatives, while preserving modeling flexibility. Finally, we provide a dedicated visualization tool that jointly captures physical and entanglement-enabled connectivity and supports entangled-state manipulations, facilitating an intuitive interpretation of entanglement dynamics and protocol behavior. Q2NS offers a flexible, open, and scalable simulation platform for advancing Quantum Internet research.

quant-pharXiv:2603.02857•Computer Networks•Mar 4, 2026•3 citations

Designing an Emulation Platform for Realistic Experimentation on Quantum Networks

Blanca López, Iván Vidal, Francisco Valera +1 more

The realization of a Quantum Internet is expected to transform communication networks by enabling intrinsically secure information exchange and distributed quantum applications. However, the experimental study of large-scale quantum networks remains limited by the high cost and operational constraints of quantum hardware. To address this challenge, this paper presents the design of a platform conceived to support research and experimentation in the field of quantum networking. The proposed system provides an emulation environment that mirrors the behavior of a real quantum network, enabling researchers to test protocols and mechanisms through a set of quantum operation instructions accessible via an Application Programming Interface (API). Emulated quantum nodes can be deployed across physically distributed locations, using physical or virtual machines or virtualization containers, allowing experiments to reproduce realistic network conditions and inter-node interactions. This approach enables applications to be executed over a persistent, configurable, and interactive environment that integrates both quantum and classical communication layers. To validate the feasibility of the proposed design, a prototype has been built and used to demonstrate its operation through a multi-hop quantum teleportation proof of concept. The results confirm the viability and flexibility of the architecture, laying the foundation for a distributed framework that facilitates the development and evaluation of quantum network architectures, control mechanisms, and experimental use cases.

International Conference on Quantum Communications, Networking, and Computing (QCNC)•Apr 6, 2026•0 citations

Benchmarking Distributed Quantum Computing Emulators

Guillermo Díaz-Camacho, Iago F. Llovo, F. Javier Cardama +7 more

Scalable quantum computing requires architectural solutions beyond monolithic processors. Distributed quantum computing (DQC) addresses this challenge by interconnecting smaller quantum nodes through quantum communication protocols, enabling collaborative computation. While several experimental and theoretical proposals for DQC exist, emulator platforms are essential tools for exploring their feasibility under realistic conditions. In this work, we introduce a benchmarking framework to evaluate DQC emulators using a distributed implementation of the inverse Quantum Fourier Transform ($\mathrm{QFT}^{\dagger}$) as a representative test case, which enables efficient phase recovery from pre-encoded Fourier states. The QFT is partitioned across nodes using teleportation-based protocols, and performance is analyzed in terms of execution time, memory usage, and fidelity with respect to a monolithic baseline. As part of this work, we review a broad range of emulators, identifying their capabilities and limitations for programming distributed quantum algorithms. Many platforms either lacked support for teleportation protocols or required complex workarounds. Consequently, we select and benchmark four representative emulators: Qiskit Aer, SquidASM, Interlin-q, and SQUANCH. They differ significantly in their support for discrete-event simulation, quantum networking, noise modeling, and parallel execution. Our results highlight the trade-offs between architectural fidelity and simulation scalability, providing a foundation for future emulator development and the validation of distributed quantum protocols. This framework can be extended to support additional algorithms and emulators.

quant-pharXiv:2512.01807•Dec 2, 2025•0 citations
Quantum networks in their most general configuration consist of nodes, containing sources, detectors, memories, and logic gates, connected by both quantum and classical channels. Quantum networks leverage the unique properties of quantum mechanics to enable "beyond classical" communication, sensing, and computing protocols. The research community has recently emphasized computational simulation of these networks as an approach to gauging their performance, understanding their properties, and considering the impact of technical standards. Despite this, the implications of quantum networks in military contexts with limited resources remains underexplored. We review a recently introduced quantum network simulation framework that we developed, named QuanTACT, that is specifically tailored for integration into existing tactical simulation tools, such as the Extendable Mobile Ad hoc Network Emulator (EMANE). The QuanTACT framework is built from the SQUANCH quantum network simulation tool by adding quantum channel models for optical fiber and various subroutines required for entanglement-based QKD simulation such as key sifting, information reconciliation, and privacy amplification. Our choice of SQUANCH as opposed to other quantum network simulation tools is due to the agent-based model utilized by SQUANCH which allows for fully parallelized simulations with multiple agents running their own processes. This distributed architecture is, by design, consistent with EMANE and facilitates future integration. Building off of benchmark results based on field-deployed QKD experiments, we investigate the computational scaling properties of this system for linear chains of nodes that exchange keys via an XOR operation.
Quantum networks exploit the unique properties of quantum mechanics to enable communication and networking tasks unavailable to existing distributed classical systems. Recently, the research community has focused considerable effort on the simulation of large-scale quantum networks with the ultimate goal of understanding their general properties, developing technical standards, and estimating their expected performance. However, comparatively little effort has been spent considering how quantum networks may impact tactical scenarios of military relevance where both quantum and classical resources may be severely constrained. Here, we develop a custom framework, called QuanTACT, for quantum network simulation explicitly designed for future integration into existing tactical simulation tools. In particular, our framework extends the existing quantum networking tool, SQUANCH, to include channel models required to simulate deployed fiber environments. Furthermore, we implement the additional subroutines needed to simulate entanglement-based quantum key distribution (QKD) and use published results from various field-deployed QKD experiments to benchmark the performance of our framework.
As quantum networking hardware remains costly and not yet widely accessible, simulation tools are essential for the design and evaluation of quantum network architectures and protocols. However, designing a scalable and computationally efficient quantum network simulator is intrinsically challenging: (i) quantum dynamics must be emulated on classical computing platforms while capturing the stateful and non-local nature of entanglement, a unique quantum resource without any classical networking analog; (ii) moreover, quantum networking is inherently hybrid, as protocol execution also fundamentally depends on classical signaling. This makes a tight and faithful co-simulation of quantum operations and classical message exchanges a core requirement. In this light, we present Q2NS, a modular and extensible quantum network simulator, built on top of ns-3, designed to seamlessly integrate quantum-network primitives with ns-3’s established classical protocol stack. Q2NS adopts a modular architecture that decouples protocol control logic from node- and channel-level operations, enabling rapid prototyping and adaptation across heterogeneous and evolving Quantum Internet scenarios. Q2NS natively supports multiple quantum state representations through a unified plug-in interface, allowing interchangeable state-vector, density-matrix, and stabilizer backends. We validate Q2NS through realistic use-case studies and comprehensive benchmarks, demonstrating superior computational efficiency over representative state-of-the-art alternatives, while preserving modeling flexibility. Finally, we provide a dedicated visualization tool that jointly captures physical and entanglement-enabled connectivity and supports entangled-state manipulations, facilitating an intuitive interpretation of entanglement dynamics and protocol behavior. Overall, Q2NS offers a flexible, open, and scalable simulation platform for advancing Quantum Internet research.
As quantum networking hardware remains costly and not yet widely accessible, simulation tools are essential for the design and evaluation of quantum network architectures and protocols. However, designing a scalable and computationally efficient quantum network simulator is intrinsically challenging: i) quantum dynamics must be emulated on classical computing platforms while capturing the stateful and non-local nature of entanglement, a quantum resource without any classical networking analog; ii) quantum networking is inherently hybrid, as protocol execution also fundamentally depends on classical signaling. This makes a tight and faithful co-simulation of quantum operations and classical message exchanges a core requirement. In this light, we present Q2NS, a modular and extensible quantum network simulator, built on top of ns-3, designed to seamlessly integrate quantum-network primitives with ns-3's established classical protocol stack. Q2NS adopts a modular architecture that decouples protocol control logic from node- and channel-level operations, enabling rapid prototyping and adaptation across heterogeneous and evolving Quantum Internet scenarios. Q2NS natively supports multiple quantum state representations through a unified interface, allowing interchangeable state-vector, density-matrix, and stabilizer backends. We validate Q2NS through realistic use-case studies and comprehensive benchmarks, demonstrating superior computational efficiency over representative state-of-the-art alternatives, while preserving modeling flexibility. Finally, we provide a dedicated visualization tool that jointly captures physical and entanglement-enabled connectivity and supports entangled-state manipulations, facilitating an intuitive interpretation of entanglement dynamics and protocol behavior. Q2NS offers a flexible, open, and scalable simulation platform for advancing Quantum Internet research.
The realization of a Quantum Internet is expected to transform communication networks by enabling intrinsically secure information exchange and distributed quantum applications. However, the experimental study of large-scale quantum networks remains limited by the high cost and operational constraints of quantum hardware. To address this challenge, this paper presents the design of a platform conceived to support research and experimentation in the field of quantum networking. The proposed system provides an emulation environment that mirrors the behavior of a real quantum network, enabling researchers to test protocols and mechanisms through a set of quantum operation instructions accessible via an Application Programming Interface (API). Emulated quantum nodes can be deployed across physically distributed locations, using physical or virtual machines or virtualization containers, allowing experiments to reproduce realistic network conditions and inter-node interactions. This approach enables applications to be executed over a persistent, configurable, and interactive environment that integrates both quantum and classical communication layers. To validate the feasibility of the proposed design, a prototype has been built and used to demonstrate its operation through a multi-hop quantum teleportation proof of concept. The results confirm the viability and flexibility of the architecture, laying the foundation for a distributed framework that facilitates the development and evaluation of quantum network architectures, control mechanisms, and experimental use cases.
Scalable quantum computing requires architectural solutions beyond monolithic processors. Distributed quantum computing (DQC) addresses this challenge by interconnecting smaller quantum nodes through quantum communication protocols, enabling collaborative computation. While several experimental and theoretical proposals for DQC exist, emulator platforms are essential tools for exploring their feasibility under realistic conditions. In this work, we introduce a benchmarking framework to evaluate DQC emulators using a distributed implementation of the inverse Quantum Fourier Transform (QFT†\mathrm{QFT}^{\dagger}QFT†) as a representative test case, which enables efficient phase recovery from pre-encoded Fourier states. The QFT is partitioned across nodes using teleportation-based protocols, and performance is analyzed in terms of execution time, memory usage, and fidelity with respect to a monolithic baseline. As part of this work, we review a broad range of emulators, identifying their capabilities and limitations for programming distributed quantum algorithms. Many platforms either lacked support for teleportation protocols or required complex workarounds. Consequently, we select and benchmark four representative emulators: Qiskit Aer, SquidASM, Interlin-q, and SQUANCH. They differ significantly in their support for discrete-event simulation, quantum networking, noise modeling, and parallel execution. Our results highlight the trade-offs between architectural fidelity and simulation scalability, providing a foundation for future emulator development and the validation of distributed quantum protocols. This framework can be extended to support additional algorithms and emulators.