Researchers from QuTech, a collaboration between TU Delft and TNO, have scoop Transfer of quantum information between two nodes that are not directly connected to each other. In the long run, this teleportation could form the “backbone” of a super-secure quantum Internet, according to QuTech.

“We’ve shown that we can put everything together, to make everything work at the same time. Because you’re dealing with things that have conflicting interests, as it were. It’s a blueprint for what becomes possible,” says Hans Bokers, one of the scientists who collaborated on search†

Kibits

Quantum computers Using quantum physics, theory around the world on the smallest scale. Unlike qubits in ordinary computers, qubits (qubits) can not only be 0 or 1, but can also be 0 and 1 at the same time. As a result, quantum computers can perform calculations that are not possible with current supercomputers. So quantum computers can contribute to all kinds of important research, such as new materials that could revolutionize energy or drugs tailored to the individual.

Connecting quantum computers requires a different kind of internet, which uses “entanglement” between qubits. What you do with one qubit immediately affects the other, even if those qubits are at a very large distance from each other.

Delft researchers have “entangled” three qubits to create a quantum network. So far, this has only been possible between two points.

From Alice to Charlie

Alice, Bob, and Charlie are what researchers call the Three Decades. They used entanglement to transmit information from Alice to Charlie, bypassing the medium, Bob.

Alice and Bob were connected by fiber, and so were Bob and Charlie, but Alice and Charlie had no physical contact. Bob enabled the teleportation of information between Alice and Charlie by reconciling two entanglements.

When measuring quantum states, information is lost instantly. This also happens with a measurement in Charlie, but this information immediately appears on Alice’s side. The qubit is transmitted encrypted, with the result of the measurement defined by Charlie for the key. Then Alice performs the quantum operation needed to decode the qubit.

do not break

One of the great promises of the quantum internet is communication that cannot be intercepted or eavesdropped. If someone tries this, the information will immediately disappear. Only the sender and receiver can access certain information.

“With computers and the Internet today, anything can be hacked as long as you have a powerful enough computer,” Bookers says. “Mathematical security can be broken, physics can’t. It is inherently secure, unbreakable.” “With the quantum internet, it is immediately noticed if someone is tampering with certain information.”

Gives the example of a government agency that sends nuclear secrets to another government organization. “It may not be possible to decipher a message like this now, but you want it to still be 30 years from now. That is the promise of the quantum internet.”

In addition to secure communication, the quantum internet could also provide more privacy, Beckers says. “Services no longer need all kinds of information about you in order to be able to recognize and help you.”

a plus

There is still a lot of work to be done before quantum computers can work together in an international network. “We first need to get the technology out of the lab and make it more powerful in the field.” According to the researchers, this was roughly the maximum that could be achieved with the design used. “To make it scalable, a different setup is needed. We’re looking for other particles to create entanglement with it. Experiments are underway, but it’s still in its infancy.”

Research is also being conducted on the use of infrared light to make quantum internet possible over ordinary fiber-optic cables. “We will probably be ten years away before there is a global network of quantum computers.”