Cisco has revealed a new experimental chip called Quantum Network Clip Chip. This chip can help grow quantum computing very faster than expected. The company feels that quantum computing can be ready for the use of the real world in only 5 to 10 years-much faster than people. Along with this, Cisco has opened a new lab called Cisco Quantum Labs in Santa Monica, California. Here, scientists and engineers are working on the technique required to connect quantum computers on a network. The goal is to work together many small quantum processors instead of relying on a large, expensive machine.

Currently, most quantum computers have only a few hundred Qualbits (quantum version of computer bits). But for large, useful tasks, they will need millions. Cisco compares it from the early days of normal computers – instead of creating a huge computer, they added many small people to create the Internet. The company said, “Just as Cisco helped build a infrastructure for the Internet, now we are creating quantum networking techniques which will be the foundation of quantum internet.” In this way, quantum computers can grow in a clever, more practical way.

The University of California, the new chip made with Santa Barbara, forms something called “tangled photon”. These are special particles of light that immediately share information to the quantum computer, no matter how far they are. This is called quantum teleportation. The chip is small, uses very low power (less than 1mw), and can complicate a photon pairs in 200 million every second. Best of all, it works at normal room temperature and fits into the current internet system. Cisco explains: “It generates couples of tangled photons that enable immediate connections regardless of the distance through quantum teleportation – Einstein has described as ‘distance horrific action’.”

But this chip is just one piece of Cisco’s large plan. The company is also working on other important parts, such as tangled data, a special quantum compiler and the rules to share a quantum network development kit. All these devices are being developed to help in building the future of quantum computers connected to Santa Monica Lab. Cisco has also shared a research paper called “Quantum Data Center Infrastructure”, to explain how it will work.

While preparing for the future, Cisco is also making today’s technology safe. It is adding post-quantum cryptography (PQC) to its current products to protect normal computers from future quantum hacking. The company says its quantum networking ideas will help both quantum and general computers. For example, quantum networks can better make things such as safe messaging, super-sequential clocks and locations.

The Cisco is not selecting the sides in the quantum race. Instead, it is creating basic systems that can use any type of quantum computer – whether it can use superconductors, stuck ions or other methods -. The company said, “We do not need to choose the winners as we are building networking fabrics that will enable various quantum technologies to scale,” the company said.