Quantum computing promises to offer significant computational advantages for certain types of problems, which motivates its integration into current software systems. In this context, Service-Oriented Computing provides a suitable mechanism for encapsulating classical and quantum resources through the concept of hybrid quantum-classical services. Although techniques aimed at obtaining optimal deployments for this type of application are beginning to emerge, the literature still highlights the need for methodologies and tools to describe, validate, and homogenize the deployment structures of hybrid applications. To address this gap, this work proposes a MDE-based approach through the definition of a DSL for specifying deployment schemes for hybrid quantum-classical service applications. The proposal enables the description of the available classical and quantum resources, the services that compose the application, and the assignment of quantum services to QPUs, including the mapping between logical and physical qubits. In addition, a model-to-text transformation is provided to generate YAML artifacts that can be interpreted by deployment processes. Finally, the proposed grammar is instantiated on a hybrid search scenario to illustrate its applicability.
Quantum computing promises to offer significant computational advantages for certain types of problems, which motivates its integration into current software systems. In this context, Service-Oriented Computing provides a suitable mechanism for encapsulating classical and quantum resources through the concept of hybrid quantum-classical services. Although techniques aimed at obtaining optimal deployments for this type of application are beginning to emerge, the literature still highlights the need for methodologies and tools to describe, validate, and homogenize the deployment structures of hybrid applications. To address this gap, this work proposes a MDE-based approach through the definition of a DSL for specifying deployment schemes for hybrid quantum-classical service applications. The proposal enables the description of the available classical and quantum resources, the services that compose the application, and the assignment of quantum services to QPUs, including the mapping between logical and physical qubits. In addition, a model-to-text transformation is provided to generate YAML artifacts that can be interpreted by deployment processes. Finally, the proposed grammar is instantiated on a hybrid search scenario to illustrate its applicability.
Addressing problems beyond classical computing limits is sparking an increasing interest in Quantum Computing. However, despite their adequacy to address specific problems, quantum algorithms cover a limited subset of the functionality required in real-world computing systems. Additionally, they require expensive specialized hardware. To overcome this issue, hybrid (quantum-classical) software systems are emerging as a promising way to integrate both computing paradigms by applying the principles of Service-Oriented Architectures (SOA). Still, the design and deployment of hybrid service-based systems faces unique challenges like the idiosyncrasies and constraints of NISQ computers (e.g., algorithms that can only run in specific machines, disparate quality attribute metrics), and the management of structural and behavioural properties of service-based applications. From the SOA perspective, architectural decisions need to be made by performing a trade-off analysis and providing quantitative guarantees of system configurations under prescribed levels of uncertainty. In this paper, a method to explore the design space of quantum-classical applications is provided by a formalization of an architectural style of hybrid applications. The obtained results demonstrate that the proposed method successfully identifies decision boundaries. It enables the dynamic selection of the most suitable hybrid or classical configuration based on the user's QoS criteria.
Early advances in the field of quantum computing have provided new opportunities to tackle intricate problems in areas as diverse as mathematics, physics, or healthcare. However, the technology required to construct such systems where different pieces of quantum and classical software collaborate is currently lacking. For this reason, significant advancements in quantum service-oriented computing are necessary to enable developers to create and operate quantum services and microservices comparable to their classical counterparts. Therefore, the core objective of this work is to establish the necessary technological infrastructure that enables the application of the benefits and lessons learned from service-oriented computing to the domain of quantum software engineering. To this end, we propose a pipeline for the continuous deployment of services. Additionally, we have validated the proposal by making use of a modification of the OpenAPI specification, the GitHub Actions, and AWS.
This book is an analysis of quantum computing, covering everything from its foundational principles to practical applications in the development of quantum services. It offers a technical and complex overview to provide the necessary knowledge to any researcher, scientist or developer who wants to get into service-oriented quantum computing. The field of quantum computing has evolved rapidly in recent years, with the potential to revolutionize the way we approach complex problems in various fields. This comprehensive guide covers the fundamental principles of quantum computing and its practical applications in the development of quantum services. Beyond theoretical knowledge, the book goes on to explore some of the challenges that quantum software developers face in today’s landscape. It addresses issues related to low-level abstractions and the absence of integration, deployment and quality assurance mechanisms in quantum software engineering. Also, it explores the principles of service-oriented computing applied to quantum computing, revealing architectural patterns adapted to quantum computing and discussing standardization and accessibility in this field. It also provides insight into streamlining the deployment process through a DevOps approach for continuous deployment of quantum services. This book will serve as a guide for all researchers, scientists and developers by providing them with an understanding of the current limitations and problems in quantum computing-oriented software development, and how to address them with software engineering techniques and tools applied to quantum computing.
This paper introduces a vision for Quantum Software Development lifecycle, proposing a hybrid full-stack iterative model that integrates quantum and classical computing. Addressing the current challenges in Quantum Computing (QC) such as the need for integrating diverse programming languages and managing the complexities of quantum-classical systems, this model is rooted in the principles of DevOps and continuous software engineering. It presents a comprehensive lifecycle for quantum software development, encompassing quantum-agnostic coding, testing, deployment, cloud computing services, orchestration, translation, execution, and interpretation phases. Each phase is designed to accommodate the unique demands of QC, enabling traditional software developers to engage with QC environments without needing in-depth QC expertise. The paper presents a detailed implementation roadmap, utilizing a range of existing tools and frameworks, thereby making quantum software development more accessible and efficient. The proposed model not only addresses current challenges in quantum software development but also makes a substantial contribution to the field of Quantum Software Engineering (QSE). By proposing a structured and accessible model, it sets the stage for further advancements and research in QSE, enhancing its practicality and relevance in a wide range of applications.
The rapid advancements in quantum computing have opened new possibilities for solving complex problems in various fields, including cryptography, optimization, and simulation. However, the current approaches to quantum computing often require a deep understanding of quantum hardware and low-level programming languages, making it difficult for software developers to create and deploy quantum services. This paper argues for the adaptation of Service-Oriented Computing principles to quantum computing, enabling a level of abstraction from hardware that allows developers to focus on application development. This will allow developers to create and deploy quantum services, similarly to how Service-Oriented Computing has made it easier to develop traditional software services. This paper presents a Continuous Deployment approach for quantum service development, which involves the generation and deployment of quantum services. To do that, we propose an extension of the OpenAPI specification to generate services implementing a quantum algorithm. To validate the feasibility of the proposed process, we use a variety of quantum algorithm implementations to test their generation and deployment of quantum services.
Quantum systems have started to emerge as a disruptive technology and enabling platforms - exploiting the principles of quantum mechanics via programmable quantum bits (QuBits) - to achieve quantum supremacy in computing. Academic research, industrial projects (e.g., Amazon Braket, IBM Qiskit), and consortiums like 'Quantum Flagship' are striving to develop practically capable and commercially viable quantum computing (QC) systems and technologies. Quantum Computing as a Service (QCaaS) is viewed as a solution attuned to the philosophy of service-orientation that can offer QC resources and platforms, as utility computing, to individuals and organisations who do not own quantum computers. This research investigates a process-centric and architecture-driven approach to offer a software engineering perspective on enabling QCaaS - a.k.a quantum service-orientation. We employed a two-phase research method comprising (a) a systematic mapping study and (b) an architecture-based development, first to identify the phases of the quantum service development life cycle and subsequently to integrate these phases into a reference architecture that supports QCaaS. The SMS process retrieved a collection of potentially relevant research literature and based on a multi-step selection and qualitative assessment, we selected 41 peer-reviewed studies to answer three RQs. The RQs investigate (i) demographic details in terms of frequency, types, and trends of research, (ii) phases of quantum service development lifecycle to derive a reference architecture for conception, modeling, assembly, and deployment of services, and (iii) The results identify a 4-phased development lifecycle along with quantum significant requirements (QSRs), various modeling notations, catalogue of patterns, programming languages, and deployment platforms that can be integrated in a layered reference architecture to engineer QCaaS.