Cisco, a global manufacturer of technology that powers the internet, has joined the CQE as a corporate partner. The California-based company includes Cisco Quantum Lab, which focuses on quantum networking and quantum-safe networking — two areas that are central to the CQE partnership.
“We look forward to collaborating with Cisco on quantum communications and quantum networking-focused research using our Chicago Quantum Network,” said David Awschalom, the Liew Family Professor in Molecular Engineering and Physics at the University of Chicago, director of the Chicago Quantum Exchange, and director of Q-NEXT, a Department of Energy National Quantum Information Science Research Center at Argonne National Laboratory. “As we work together to advance our fundamental understanding of quantum communication and develop a secure quantum internet, we move closer to revolutionary applications that will strengthen national security, financial systems, and more.”
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The CQE community is home to one of the nation’s longest quantum networks — 124 miles and growing. Cisco develops sub-systems and systems for quantum communications through Cisco Quantum Lab and is actively involved in designing and constructing a practical quantum network. Cisco Research actively seeks proposals from academic researchers in this space and more details can be found on their website.
“Cisco Research envisions the future of quantum networks as a network for distributing entanglement, designed to interconnect quantum computers and quantum sensing devices for distributed quantum computing and sensing at scale,” said Reza Nejabati, Head of Cisco Quantum Labs, an international community of researchers and engineers that works in close contact with academia, industry, and innovation ecosystems.
"Quantum is a key pillar of Cisco Research, and we are actively researching quantum networking and security,” said Ramana Kompella, Head of Cisco Research. “With that vision, we have set up quantum labs last year in Santa Monica, California, where we are researching the key building blocks for scalable quantum networks. In addition, we are actively working on new protocols and techniques to secure classical digital infrastructure against quantum threats — aka quantum-resistant security. To achieve these goals, Cisco Research supports collaborative research partnerships with CQE members for developing the theoretical foundations.”
The CQE is based at the University of Chicago and anchored by the US Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory and Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the University of Wisconsin–Madison, Northwestern University, and Purdue University. The CQE includes about 50 corporate, international, nonprofit, and regional partners.