Routing and congestion on quantum networks

Identifier:  TFM:45

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/TFM45

Authors:  Sampé Domènech, Josep

Abstract:
Abstract Small-scale quantum communication networks are a reality today, both at laboratory and commercial levels, and increasingly are becoming more progress so that in the near future we can have a quantum Internet. Currently, the main application of such networks is to exploit the features offered by quantum mechanics to make an important cryptographic primitive: the exchange of secret keys. As well as classical cryptography bases its robustness in unproven mathematical operations, quantum cryptography bases their robustness on unbreakable physical laws, so it is presumed much safer. In this work we analyze how would be the dynamics in such large-scale networks, considering the underlying structure. So we've defined several models that capture the basic properties of a quantum communication network. We have also defined a set of networks created with different models to study the existence of transition from free-flow state to a congested state in function of the network parameters. Finally we implemented several routing algorithms to see how they affect to the system congestion, and compare their efficiency in function of the underlying network, trying, always, increase the free-flow zone.