Project Details
This project will determine architectural foundations for future transparent, all-optical networks with quantum repeater backbones. The network will contain coexisting quantum and classical optical traffic and hybrid continuous variable (CV) and discrete variable (DV) components to maximize quantum information throughput and efficiency. To facilitate this quantum-classical coexistence network, our approach seeks to develop the concepts and building blocks for hybrid CV/DV encoded all-optical one-way quantum repeater networks. The key networking building blocks that this project will provide are CV and DV quantum light sources compatible with telecom fiber networks (including both squeezed light and discrete entangled photons), a control plane harness that supports development and testing of coexistence between quantum and classical network components, proof-of-principle hybrid network protocols, including hybrid teleportation, and a blueprint for a hybrid quantum repeater backbone. As it is all optical, this approach in principle requires no quantum memory. During the first 2 years, a transparent optical quantum network emulator will also be developed to test control plane and hybrid protocol designs. The control plane harness will be compatible with and can be deployed in other US Department of Energy (DOE) quantum networks starting in year 3 of the project. The end result will be a proof-of-principle hybrid CV/DV network that coexists with classical traffic and a clear path forward to the future with quantum repeater-based, hybrid coexistence networks. This project will play a vital role in enabling the next generation of DOE networks by augmenting the conventional parts with communications capabilities between quantum information devices ,from quantum sensors to networked quantum computers.
This project is carried out in collaboration with Prof. Saikat Guha and Prof. Linran Fan of the University of Arizona and Dr. Paul Toliver of Perspecta Labs.
