From Quantum Networks to Quantum Internet: Opportunities and Challenges

A special issue of Quantum Reports (ISSN 2624-960X).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2024) | Viewed by 9818

Special Issue Editor


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Telcom Italia, Via Reiss Romoli, 274, 10148 Turin, Italy
Interests: QKD; quantum computing; quantum internet
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Quantum technologies are attracting increasing interest, efforts and investments, and research and innovation in the field of quantum computing and communications are finally discovering practical applications outside of a laboratory setting.  The first quantum security services and quantum computing applications will soon be commercially available.

Regarding quantum communications, it is expected that quantum networks will become fully integrated with current networks, executing methods and protocols which are demonstrably more efficient than their classic counterparts. They will enable new services such as advanced quantum security services (e.g., via QRNG and QKD), quantum computing services (e.g., via cloud quantum computing, blind computing, etc.), quantum Artificial Intelligence, and new forms of communications towards the quantum internet.

Quantum networks include quantum nodes and systems in charge of networking, processing and storing units of quantum information for the end-users. Currently, several international efforts are aiming to define and test protocol stacks for quantum networks and their evolution for the quantum internet: interfaces and protocols must be designed and standardized, beginning with the physical, data linkage and network layers, in order to account for the requirements of quantum technologies.

However, a major obstacle hindering these developments is that the industry has not yet consolidated around one type of quantum hardware technology (e.g., based on trapped ions, superconducting electrons, or silicon photonics) for quantum computing and networking. In this scenario, to accelerate the development of quantum ecosystems, there is a need to define the abstractions and interfaces decoupling quantum hardware from upper software layers. This is a promising area of innovation, which intertwines with quantum software activities.

The aims of this Special Issue include: (1) detailing the state-of-the-art of methods and systems for quantum networks (e.g., software and hardware) in order to forecast the potential socio-economic impacts; (2) proposing architectural principles, abstractions and interfaces for quantum computing and networking; (3) providing critical analysis of experimental use cases in order to identify challenges, roadblocks, services and business opportunities.

Dr. Antonio Manzalini
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Quantum Reports is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • quantum networks
  • quantum internet
  • quantum hardware
  • quantum computing
  • quantum abstraction layer
  • quantum API
  • quantum protocols

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

12 pages, 296 KiB  
Article
Entropic DDoS Detection for Quantum Networks
by Del Rajan
Quantum Rep. 2022, 4(4), 604-615; https://doi.org/10.3390/quantum4040044 - 13 Dec 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2070
Abstract
Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks are a significant issue in classical networks. These attacks have been shown to impact the critical infrastructure of a nation, such as its major financial institutions. The possibility of DDoS attacks has also been identified for quantum networks. In [...] Read more.
Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks are a significant issue in classical networks. These attacks have been shown to impact the critical infrastructure of a nation, such as its major financial institutions. The possibility of DDoS attacks has also been identified for quantum networks. In this theoretical work, we introduce a quantum analogue of classical entropic DDoS detection systems and apply it in the context of detecting an attack on a quantum network. In particular, we examine DDoS attacks on a quantum repeater and harness the associated entanglement entropy for the detection system. Our results extend the applicability of quantum information from the domain of data security to the area of network security. Full article
13 pages, 703 KiB  
Article
End-to-End Entanglement Generation Strategies: Capacity Bounds and Impact on Quantum Key Distribution
by Antonio Manzalini and Michele Amoretti
Quantum Rep. 2022, 4(3), 251-263; https://doi.org/10.3390/quantum4030017 - 29 Jul 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2777
Abstract
A first quantum revolution has already brought quantum technologies into our everyday life for decades: in fact, electronics and optics are based on the quantum mechanical principles. Today, a second quantum revolution is underway, leveraging the quantum principles of superposition, entanglement and measurement, [...] Read more.
A first quantum revolution has already brought quantum technologies into our everyday life for decades: in fact, electronics and optics are based on the quantum mechanical principles. Today, a second quantum revolution is underway, leveraging the quantum principles of superposition, entanglement and measurement, which were not fully exploited yet. International innovation activities and standardization bodies have identified four main application areas for quantum technologies and services: quantum secure communications, quantum computing, quantum simulation, and quantum sensing and metrology. This paper focuses on quantum secure communications by addressing the evolution of Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) networks (under early exploitation today) towards the Quantum-ready networks and the Quantum Internet based also on entanglement distribution. Assuming that management and control of quantum nodes is a key challenge under definition, today, a main obstacle in exploiting long-range QKD and Quantum-ready networks concerns the inherent losses due to the optical transmission channels. Currently, it is assumed that a most promising way for overcoming this limitation, while avoiding the presence of costly trusted nodes, it is to distribute entangled states by means of Quantum Repeaters. In this respect, the paper provides an overview of current methods and systems for end-to-end entanglement generation, with some simulations and a discussion of capacity upper bounds and their impact of secret key rate in QKD systems. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

13 pages, 781 KiB  
Article
Mitigation of Routing Congestion on Data Networks: A Quantum Game Theory Approach
by Agustin Silva, Omar G. Zabaleta and Constancio M. Arizmendi
Quantum Rep. 2022, 4(2), 135-147; https://doi.org/10.3390/quantum4020010 - 25 Mar 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3472
Abstract
Because of the sustained growth of information and mobile users transmitting a great amount of data packets, modern network performances are being seriously affected by congestion problems. In fact, congestion management is a challenging task that can be roughly summarized as a trade [...] Read more.
Because of the sustained growth of information and mobile users transmitting a great amount of data packets, modern network performances are being seriously affected by congestion problems. In fact, congestion management is a challenging task that can be roughly summarized as a trade off between transmission latency and cost. In order to contribute to solve the congestion problem on communication networks, a novel framework based on a quantum game model is proposed, where network packets compete selfishly for their fastest route. Simulations show that final network routing and traveling times achieved with the quantum version outperform those obtained with a classical game model with the same options for packet transmission for both. Pareto optimality and Nash equilibrium are studied as well as the influence of simulated and real noise in the quantum protocol. This leads to the opportunity of developing full-stack protocols that may be capable of taking advantage of the quantum properties for optimizing communication systems. Due to its generality, this game approach can be applied both in classical complex networks and in future quantum networks in order to maximize the performance of the quantum internet. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop