According to the scientists, the 22-mile distance between nodes is the longest quantum fiber network to date.
Physicists at Harvard University have built what they believe is the world’s longest secure quantum communications network using 22 miles of currently existing fiber-optic cables.
The experiment, published in the scientific journal Nature, connected two functional quantum computer nodes to each other through a strange physical phenomenon called “entanglement.” This allowed them to share data across the 22-mile distance in a paradigm that, according to the laws of physics, is unhackable.
The world is currently embroiled in a technological race to shore up global computer security ahead of “Q Day,” a hypothetical point in the near future when bad actors will have access to quantum computers powerful enough to shred current encryption methods.
