Our paper has been recently published in Physical Review Applied. Emily Van Milligen (Wyant College of Optical Sciences, Univ. of Arizona), first author of our paper, wrote the following popular summary:
Quantum networks have the potential to distribute entangled qubit pairs, typically photons, across vast distances, enabling breakthroughs in areas like long-baseline astronomy and distributed magnetic field sensing. When entangled states are successfully distributed amongst sensors in a network, their high correlation allows for improved sensitivity when detecting global features. However, distributing and maintaining these states is challenging due to noise and loss from the environment.
The goal of this paper is to maximize sensitivity, often quantified by Fisher Information in sensor networks. Achieving this involves exploring optimal timing, entangling measurements, and protocols such as entanglement distillation. These efforts are vital in helping quantum networks reach the Heisenberg Limit of sensitivity, where the accuracy of measurements grows quadratically with the number of sensors involved, as opposed to the Standard Quantum Limit where the accuracy grows linearly with the number of sensors.
Previous work has identified that achieving this level of sensitivity relies on the nature of the entangled states used. This research builds on these foundations by focusing on routing algorithms that can enhance the performance of sensor networks. These insights will drive future advancements in the use of quantum networks for sensing and other cutting-edge applications.
These results will spur new research focusing on designing efficient networking algorithms to optimize entanglement distribution for sensing applications.
Quantum information science and technology 