Nu Quantum, a leading quantum entanglement startup, has announced its collaboration with CERN to adopt White Rabbit timing technology, enabling data centre-scale quantum computing networks. This technology, born at CERN, allows for highly precise timing synchronization, which is crucial for developing large-scale quantum networks. Nu Quantum is the first quantum industrial partner to join the White Rabbit Collaboration. The company will preview its world-first Quantum Networking Unit at the National Quantum Technology Showcase 2024, a technology that enables multiple quantum computing nodes to be woven together into a distributed quantum computing machine.
Ed Wood, VP of Product at Nu Quantum, said that the QNU brings the industry closer to quantum networking solutions that can be deployed in the data centre. Edoardo Martelli, coordinator of CERN’s Quantum Technology Initiative activities in quantum networking, praised the adoption of White Rabbit technology, originally developed to synchronise CERN’s accelerators, for its role in enabling future quantum computing and networking. Javier Serrano, Chair of the White Rabbit Collaboration Board, welcomed Nu Quantum to the collaboration, fostering the uptake by industry of the WR technology.
Enabling Data Centre-Scale Quantum Computing Networks with White Rabbit Timing Technology
The adoption of CERN-born White Rabbit (WR) technology by Nu Quantum marks a significant milestone in the development of data centre-scale quantum computing networks. WR enables highly precise timing synchronisation, which is crucial for developing large-scale quantum networks. As the first quantum industrial partner to join the WR Collaboration, Nu Quantum is poised to revolutionise the field of quantum computing.
The current control systems employed in today’s data centres typically rely on a mix of proprietary protocols and hard-wired connections that are challenging to scale and struggle to synchronise events to a common clock. In contrast, WR allows for timing synchronisation with sub-nanosecond accuracy, while also providing an Ethernet network for control, distribution, and data acquisition. This level of synchronisation is essential for creating the entanglement between computers, which establishes the quantum network.
Nu Quantum’s adoption of WR technology is a key component of their world-first Quantum Networking Unit (QNU), which will be capable of performing an analogous function in the quantum world as the IP switching fabric does in a conventional data centre. By defining a clean separation of the Control plane from the Quantum/optics plane, the QNU will allow for independent evolution of capability and performance.
The Role of White Rabbit Technology in Enabling Quantum Networks
White Rabbit technology was originally developed at CERN to synchronise devices in accelerators down to sub-nanoseconds and solve the challenge of establishing a common notion of time across a network. In 2020, WR was included in the worldwide industry standard known as Precision Time Protocol (PTP), governed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). The launch of the White Rabbit Collaboration in 2024 marked a significant milestone in the development of this technology, bringing together stakeholders from around the world to maintain a high-performance open-source technology that meets the needs of users.
The objective of the White Rabbit Collaboration is to facilitate the uptake of WR technology by industry, thereby enabling the development of future quantum networking technologies. As a membership-based global community, the collaboration provides a platform for stakeholders to come together and contribute to the development of this critical technology.
The CERN Quantum Technology Initiative: Facilitating the Development of Quantum Technologies
The CERN Quantum Technology Initiative explores how emerging quantum technologies can impact particle physics research, while at the same time contributing to the development of these same technologies. By facilitating the transfer of expertise and technology to industry, CERN seeks to contribute innovations to society.
With a 20-year track record of playing a leading role in the design, deployment, and operations of the Worldwide LHC Computing Grid (WLCG), CERN is well-positioned to contribute to the development of future quantum networking technologies. The initiative sets the ground for CERN to meet its future needs while at the same time contributing innovations to society.
Nu Quantum: Unlocking Data Centre-Scale Quantum Computing
Nu Quantum is creating the Entanglement Fabric for quantum computing scale-out, with a focus on unlocking data centre-scale quantum computing by weaving together quantum processors. Founded in 2018 as a spin-out of the University of Cambridge’s Cavendish Laboratory, Nu Quantum has made significant strides in recent years, including raising an £8.5M pre-series A round from main investors Amadeus Capital Partners, Expeditions Fund, and IQ Capital.
The company’s Qubit-Photon Interface (QPI), announced in October 2024, is the equivalent of a network interface card and marks a significant milestone in the development of quantum computing technologies. With its adoption of WR technology, Nu Quantum is poised to revolutionise the field of quantum computing and unlock the potential of data centre-scale quantum computing networks.
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