Qunnect, a quantum-secure networking technology company, has announced a significant achievement in quantum networking. Their network, GothamQ, has surpassed previous performance metrics, demonstrating transmission rates of 500k pairs/second of high-fidelity entangled photons with a network uptime above 99%. Unlike most quantum networks, Qunnect uses atoms at room temperature to generate polarization entangled photons. The company’s CEO, Noel Goddard, believes this represents a major step forward in quantum sensing and computing. The test results are published on ArXiv in celebration of World Quantum Day 2024.
Quantum Networking Breakthrough: High-Fidelity Entangled Photons Transmission
Qunnect, a company specializing in quantum-secure networking technology, recently announced a significant advancement in its quantum network, GothamQ. The network, which uses commercial fiber optic cable, has surpassed previous performance metrics in the distribution of polarization-based quantum entanglement. This achievement indicates the potential of Qunnect’s quantum networking components to execute entanglement-based protocols over extended periods in real-world settings.
The GothamQ network’s performance as a stable, automated network capable of supporting high-quality entanglement distribution networking protocols is a significant step forward. This advancement could unlock future applications such as distributed quantum sensing and computing. The network’s success is a testament to the progress made in transforming experimental innovations into commercial products.
Quantum Networking Using Polarization Entangled Photons
Unlike most quantum networks, Qunnect uses atoms at room temperature to generate polarization entangled photons. These qubits are native to other quantum devices such as sensors and computers. By constructing a stable network to distribute polarization qubits, Qunnect has demonstrated a path forward for other quantum networks to host applications beyond secure communications.
For this demonstration, the Qunnect team used its hardware instruments to generate, distribute, and preserve entangled photons over 34 kilometers of fiber within the GothamQ network. The QU-SRC maintained generation rates between one to ten million polarization-entangled photon pairs per second. Meanwhile, the QU-APC preserved the fidelity of the transmitted photons through an automated protocol, minimizing the quantum bit error rate.
Record-Breaking Quantum Network Performance
The result was a record-breaking 99.84% network uptime over 15 days of continuous operation. During that time, the team distributed and preserved 500,000 polarization-entangled pairs per second in commercial-grade fiber channels with 17dB of transmission loss. They also maintained a quantum bit error rate below 2.5%. The full test results are published in a manuscript posted on ArXiv.
Qunnect chose to encode quantum bits of information with light polarization for this test, as polarization qubits are native to other quantum devices such as quantum sensors and computers. This work demonstrates that the field of entanglement distribution networking is ready to transition from proof-of-concept experiments to the era of reliable, 24/7 operation.
Qunnect’s Future Plans and Quantum Networking System
As part of its mission to transform traditional telecom infrastructure into quantum networks, Qunnect’s products are all housed in standard server racks. They are currently installed and operating on testbeds around the world. Later this year, Qunnect plans to release the industry’s first full-rack quantum networking system to enable users to replicate the entanglement distribution protocols demonstrated in this announcement.
Qunnect is a company that innovates and commercializes the core technologies needed for scalable quantum networking. In 2021, the company introduced the world’s first quantum memory for market deployment. This serves as the cornerstone to Qunnect’s quantum repeater product suite, an integrated solution for long-distance distribution of entanglement across existing telecommunications infrastructure. GothamQ, its quantum networking testbed in New York City, comprises 300 kilometers of commercial telecom fiber and connects its research facilities in the Brooklyn Navy Yard to Manhattan and Queens.
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