What Is Quantum Internet? Its Properties and Elements.

Hello and welcome back to yet another interesting blog, and today we would be discussing something really interesting. We all are using the internet, and it is because of the internet that you can read this blog. Today, we will be talking of something of the upcoming revolution, “The Quantum Internet”. So, hold your seat and let’s ride this roller coaster ride, and enjoy the in-depth of this technology.

What Is Quantum Internet?

A Quantum Internet dispense fundamentally new internet technologies, that enable us to solve tasks, that are impossible to finish on the classical internet. As with any fundamentally new technology, we cannot yet foresee all applications of a Quantum Internet, but it already has quite several exciting ones. For example, it allows us to do secure communication, secure identification, position verification, secure dedicated computing, and many others.

So, what does a Quantum Internet look like? On a Quantum Internet, we don’t send classical bits, 0’s and 1’s, but we transmit qubits (Quantum Bits). But otherwise, the basic elements of a Quantum Internet do not look so different from a classical one.

Elements of Quantum Internet

End Node

The first element of a Quantum Internet is what we call an End Node. An End Node is your computer or laptop or phone that is attached to the internet, and that you use to run applications. So, you need the End Node to use the Quantum Internet. As the name suggests, on a Quantum Internet we will not use normal laptops, cell phones, or computers, but instead, we will use quantum computers. These quantum computers don't need to be very complicated. It turns out that most applications of a Quantum Internet, only require these end-node quantum computers to be very simple and have less than 10 qubits. In fact, for most applications, they only need to have 1 qubit.

The reason why we typically do not need many qubits is that a Quantum Internet draws its power from quantum entanglement. And already one qubit at each endpoint is sufficient to have entanglement. In contrast to a quantum computer, we always need more qubits than can be simulated on a classical computer to do something new and interesting.

The reason why we typically do not need many qubits is that a Quantum Internet draws its power from quantum entanglement. And already one qubit at each endpoint is sufficient to have entanglement. In contrast to a quantum computer, we always need more qubits than can be simulated on a classical computer to do something new and interesting.

Quantum Repeater

The next element of a Quantum Internet is that similar to a classical internet, we have all kinds of elements that allow us to maximize the use of existing infrastructure. On a classical internet, not every computer on the internet has a direct fiber connection to every other computer on the internet. But instead, fibers run through central points where there are switches that direct the bits in the right direction.

If you want to build a Quantum Internet, then similar to a classical internet, for example, you want switches that are capable of switching single qubits. Now ideally, we would like to send qubits over very long distances; from any point on earth to any other point on earth. To achieve this, we will need something capable of sending qubits over long distances. This requires a very special form of repeater called a “Quantum Repeater”.

A Quantum Repeater works very differently than the classical repeater. When realizing a Quantum Internet, then just like on the classical internet, we will also need some control traffic. Next to quantum communication we will also use classical communication, for example, to direct the qubits in the right destination in the network.

What Makes A Quantum Internet?

Now, I have already mentioned that a Quantum Internet allows us to solve tasks that are impossible to accomplish on classical internet. Now the question is: what makes a Quantum Internet, or what makes the transmission of qubits so much more powerful than what we have today?

Qubits have very special features. For example, they cannot be copied, making them ideal for security applications. Two qubits can also be in an Entangled State. An Entangled State between two qubits is what defines a Quantum Internet. To understand entanglement or why entanglement is so useful, it is sufficient to understand two very fundamental properties of entanglement.

Properties of Entanglement

So, let me explain these two properties of entanglement and why they give power to a Quantum Internet.

The First Feature of entanglement is that it allows Maximum Coordination. So, what does this mean? Two qubits can be entangled even at very long distances. For example, I can have a qubit in Delhi, which is entangled with a qubit very far away, for example in the Netherlands. Now if I measure my qubit here in Delhi and a friend of mine would make the same measurement in the Netherlands, then it will turn out that we will always get the same outcome.

Measurement can be thought of as asking a question to a qubit. For example, I might ask the qubit: “Are you pointing left or are you pointing right?” If I were to ask the qubit: “Qubit, are you red or blue?” Then we would have always observed maximum coordination: red-red or blue-blue but never anything else. So, the first feature of entanglement is maximum coordination and it is this feature that makes entanglement so suitable for tasks that require synchronization or coordination.

The Second Feature of entanglement is that it is Inherently Private. Because of course, you might be wondering given that qubits are so powerful allowing this instantaneous maximum coordination, wouldn’t it be great if many qubits could be entangled. Now it turns out that only 2 qubits can be maximally entangled with each other. So, entanglement is inherently private. If I have a qubit here in Delhi and the qubit that it’s entangled with is somewhere in Netherland, then you can think of this entanglement as a private connection that nothing else can have part of. It is not possible for any other qubit anywhere, to have any share of this entanglement between the Delhi qubit and the qubit in the Netherland. It is this feature that makes quantum communication so fundamentally suitable for tasks that require privacy and security.

Conclusion

So, this was all about Quantum Internet and how actually will Quantum Internet, work along with the elements required in Quantum Internet and the properties that make Quantum Internet Intangible. I hope you enjoyed reading this article and also got to learn something interesting. Do follow us on our Social Media handles to stay connected.