Physics Seminar: “Toward Reliable Quantum Sensing and Networking with Physics-Informed Edge Intelligence”

About

Speaker: Dr. Anik Mallik, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer & Information Sciences. Anik Mallik also is a Jess & Mildred Fisher Endowed Professor and a Faculty Lead at the Towson University AI Institute.

Abstract: Quantum technology is slowly moving toward real deployment in computing, sensing, and communication systems beyond physics laboratories. Quantum networks offer secure and trustworthy distributed quantum computation by sharing entangled states between distant nodes. However, quantum states are extremely fragile. Noise, decoherence, and the no-cloning theorem make it difficult to sense, store, and route quantum information reliably in the real world.

This talk argues that physics-informed edge intelligence can bridge the gap between fragile quantum hardware and practical, trustworthy quantum networks. To build the foundation, first, the core concepts of quantum computing will be introduced in this talk, including qubits, superposition, entanglement, interference, measurement, and the no-cloning theorem. Then the key components of quantum networks will be discussed, such as quantum sensors, quantum memories, and quantum repeaters, along with entanglement swapping, purification, and routing. Afterward, a lightweight physics-constrained machine learning framework will be presented, which denoises quantum sensor data at the edge without generating physically impossible outputs, and adapts to aging and drifting hardware without retraining in the cloud. In addition, discussion will include a passive tomography approach that estimates the noise of a quantum link.

Lastly, a provable entanglement routing framework will be presented, where a physics-informed neural network (PINN) infers quantum decoherence from classical sensors, and generates closed-form wait, swap, or discard decisions at quantum repeaters. This research contributes to building secure and resilient quantum networks for future communication and national security infrastructure.