We are excited to present our tutorial at IEEE Quantum Week 2026 (QCE26), introducing Q2NS, our open-source quantum network simulator built on top of ns-3, the de facto standard for classical network simulation.
The tutorial will be presented on the 18th September during two sessions:
First session: 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM EDT
Second Session: 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM EDT
The tutorial will provide a practical introduction to Q2NS, showing how researchers and practitioners can prototype, simulate, and evaluate quantum network protocols by combining quantum-network dynamics with classical control signaling. Participants will explore the simulator’s modular architecture, learn how to model entanglement distribution and repeater-based scenarios, and discover Q2NSViz, the visualization workflow for inspecting both physical and entanglement connectivity. The session will include live demonstrations and hands-on exercises, allowing attendees to gain direct experience with the framework.
Agenda
Q2NS: Foundations and Architecture
• Motivation: entanglement as a network resource, and why quantum network simulation is hard;
• Introducing Q2NS and Q2NSViz: design decisions, capabilities, and ecosystem;
• Short introduction to ns-3: discrete-event simulation, nodes, channels, sockets, and callbacks;
• Q2NS architecture: core components, modular design, plug-in quantum-state backends (state-vector, density-matrix, stabilizer), and extensibility;
• Q2NSViz: trace-based visualization, replay engine, and live metrics;
• Performance and scaling: benchmarks and comparison.
Hands-on and Advanced Scenarios
• Quick start: building Q2NS as an ns-3 contrib module, running an example, and visualizing the trace;
• Hands-on Session: exploring pre-recorded traces in Q2NSViz, both the portable browser app and the Python desktop app;
• Hands-on Session: your first simulation – configure, schedule, execute; step-by-step entanglement distribution;
• Walkthrough: custom gates and noise maps, quantum-classical co-simulation over UDP, graph-state preparation and distribution;
• Advanced scenarios: congestion-aware teleportation, quantum LANs, and experimenting with quantum internet architectures beyond layering;
• Open challenges, future directions, and community resources.
Scheduling: 10:00 am – 2:30 pm
Session 1 – Foundations and Architecture (90 minutes)
• Motivation and tutorial roadmap (15 min);
• Introducing Q2NS and Q2NSViz (15 min);
• ns-3 in a nutshell (10 min);
• Design principles and the programming model (15 min);
• Core entities, plug-in backends, and applications (15 min);
• Q2NSViz: trace contract, replay engine, live metrics (8 min);
• Benchmarks and scaling (8 min);
• Q&A (4 min).
Session 2 – Hands-on and Advanced Scenarios (90 minutes)
• Quick start: build, run, visualize (5 min);
• Hands-on: exploring traces with Q2NSViz (12 min);
• Hands-on: your first simulation – configure, schedule, execute (20 min);
• Walkthrough: gates and noise maps, classical co-simulation over UDP, graph states (25 min);
• Advanced scenarios: congestion-aware teleportation, quantum LANs, beyond layering (20 min);
• Open challenges, community resources, and Q&A (8 min).
See you in Toronto!
