Cisco said on the 24th that it unveiled the "Cisco Universal Quantum Switch," designed to solve the issue of consolidation between heterogeneous quantum systems, cited as a key obstacle to building quantum networks. It is a working research prototype that aims to connect quantum computers from different manufacturers and using different technical approaches without degrading quantum information.
Quantum computers use different encoding schemes to store and transmit information depending on the manufacturer and implementation approach. The Cisco Universal Quantum Switch is designed to support major quantum encoding methods such as polarization, time-bin, frequency-bin, and path. Its patent-backed conversion engine preserves quantum information by converting encoding schemes in real time during signal transmission and reception.
The product operates over existing communications fiber and standard communications frequencies and runs at room temperature without cryogenic cooling equipment. Cisco said experiments using its own entanglement light source and single-photon detector showed quantum-state fidelity and entanglement degradation rates below 4%, and confirmed sub-nanosecond-class electro-optic switching and sub-1-milliwatt low-power operation.
Although this technology is a research prototype rather than a commercial product, it is significant as an attempt to scale quantum computers not as a single device but as a network.
Reuters reported that, unlike IBM and Google, Cisco is focusing on the network layer that links different quantum systems rather than developing its own quantum computers, and that early applications could be possible in about three years.