The first half of 2023 has already been an exciting year for quantum technology. Major tech companies like AWS, Google and IBM are continuing to invest in the space, and several countries and municipalities are experimenting with both quantum computing and quantum networking initiatives. Building a quantum network can be extremely resource intensive, combining some of the hardest problems in science and computing, but quantum networking is much closer to commercialization than quantum computing.
There are multiple differences in the requirements for quantum computers versus quantum networks. To start, the number of Qubits required for useful quantum computing range from 10,000 to 1 million, where for quantum networking, you can use as little as one qubit at a time. In addition the source for qubits in quantum computing requires custom semiconductors or ion traps, where quantum networking leverages off-the-shelf lasers. The coherence requirement for quantum computing is thousands of operations, where for quantum networking, it’s only one operation.
The type of equipment used also differs between quantum computing and quantum networking. For example, quantum computing requires expensive and exotic equipment like million dollar dilution fridges where quantum networking is able to utilize existing optical fiber that is already in the ground. There’s also a misnomer that temperatures must be at absolute zero for all types of quantum networking implementations because of the errors in qubits that heat causes. While quantum computing needs to happen in extremely cold environments, quantum communications can occur at room temperature using standard telecommunications equipment and there is continued progress being made on this front.
Perhaps the most compelling reason that quantum networking is closer to commercialization though is that there’s yet to be a compelling commercial use case for existing quantum computers while quantum secure communications (QSC) which leverages entanglement has been demonstrated as a networking use case today. QSC is an effective countermeasure to the looming quantum threat of Q-Day, the time when a quantum computer will be able to crack existing encryption systems.
There have also been several practical implementations of quantum network initiatives including the launch of EPB Quantum Network, the United States’ first industry-led, commercially available quantum network, proof that quantum technology, particularly quantum networking, is both accessible and can be revenue-generating. EPB is a great example of a quantum network that will operate at room temperature across a metro area.
Quantum networking has the potential to bring on social and technological changes that we can’t even imagine at this point, but there are practical uses right now, and the investment required to start is much less involved than the hundreds of millions of dollars needed to invest in quantum computing.
