Conference: NeSQom: NSF Workshop on Quantum Communication and Networked Systems

Quantum networking is poised to become a foundational component of future communication and computing systems, enabling capabilities such as secure communication, distributed quantum computing, and networked sensing. Realizing these systems, however, requires moving beyond isolated advances in quantum hardware toward a systems-level understanding that integrates quantum and classical networking principles. This project organizes an interdisciplinary workshop at the University of Massachusetts Amherst to bring together researchers from quantum information science and classical networking and distributed systems. Through structured interactions, the workshop will focus on identifying shared challenges, aligning abstractions, and defining the emerging area of quantum networked systems. The proposed workshop addresses a critical gap in the development of quantum networking by enabling sustained technical exchange between communities that have historically evolved separately. By bringing together expertise in quantum communication, network architecture, distributed systems, and performance modeling, the workshop will examine how classical networking principles translate to quantum settings, where they fail, and what new abstractions are required. The workshop structure, combining paired presentations, working groups, and focused discussions, is designed to surface implicit assumptions, reconcile conflicting models, and formulate well-defined research problems. The primary contribution will be a research agenda that identifies key challenges, clarifies the design space of quantum networked systems, and provides a foundation for future interdisciplinary research. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. NSF Award ID: 2625040 | Program: 01002627DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT | Principal Investigator: Taqi Raza | Institution: University of Massachusetts Amherst, AMHERST, MA | Award Amount: $50,000 View on NSF Award Search: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/show-award/?AWD_ID=2625040 View on Research.gov: https://www.research.gov/awardapi-service/v1/awards/2625040.html