Public Quantum Network PQN
The democratization of high-tech science, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) has been awarded the inaugural Continental Quantum City Prize for North & Central America. This esteemed prize honors the Public Quantum Network (PQN), a project that has effectively brought quantum technology from high-security labs into the everyday lives of people.
The World Quantum Day organization awarded the award at the United Nations International Year of Quantum Science and Technology (IYQ 2025) closing event. The award underscores a global trend toward preparing society for the impending “Quantum Age” by deploying sophisticated scientific information in urban settings where it may be discovered by chance.
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Democratizing the “Spooky”
Urbana-Champaign Big Broadband (UC2B), the Illinois Quantum Information Science and Technology Center (IQUIST), the Urbana Free Library, and UIUC’s Grainger College of Engineering collaborated to launch the PQN in November 2023. The research, headed by physics professors Virginia “Gina” Lorenz and Paul Kwiat, intends to dispel the “spooky” aura that is frequently connected to quantum mechanics.
The team’s primary goal is “to bring quantum science and technology into the public space,” which is why Professor Lorenz was thrilled about the honor. The idea is that more public involvement will result in a greater range of community-wide uses.
A Nobel Prize Experiment at the Library
A permanent connection point in The Urbana Free Library, connected to the Loomis Laboratory of Physics at UIUC, serves as the network’s hub. High school children and elderly alike can use this network to conduct a live replica of the Bell test experiment, the ground-breaking research that won researchers the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics.
This is a measurement of quantum entanglement in real time, not just a simulation. Entangled photons, which are light particles that stay connected over long distances, can have their polarization rotated by visitors. No matter how far away the user is at the library, the “entangled partner” at the university lab reacts instantly when a photon’s status is changed.
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Quantum Cookies and Valentines
In an effort to humanize the technology, the PQN has organized a number of innovative public events:
- Quantum Fortune Cookies: Using genuinely random quantum numbers, visitors can “open” digital fortunes with Quantum Fortune Cookies.
- Quantum Valentines: In 2025, encrypted “Quantum Valentine’s Day” messages were sent over the network, illustrating how quantum features can guarantee secure communication.
- Citizen Science: By offering a real-time state of quantum links, the network transforms complicated physics into an open community resource.
The future of quantum optics, according to Professor Paul Kwiat, depends on the public’s imagination. The designers of the smartphone “had no idea you were going to use them to order pizza,” he says, drawing a comparison between the current stage of quantum technology and that achievement. The team thinks that by putting these tools in a library, it would encourage a new generation of “quantum natives”.
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The Infrastructure of the Future
Using “dark fiber” existing but underutilized fiber-optic cables provided by UC2B is one of the project’s most important features. This illustrates how the foundation for a potential “Quantum Internet” might already be beneath city streets, just waiting to be turned on.
In pursuit of this objective, Professor Lorenz recently received a $800,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to enhance quantum memory. The network may travel considerably greater distances because to this technology, which serves as a “hard drive” for quantum information.
Scaling Up: From Local to Global
A significant extension beyond the local library is already in the works for the PQN. They are preparing new nodes for:
- The network is linked to a top national particle physics lab through the Lederman Science Center at Fermilab.
- The integration of quantum connections with traditional high-performance computing at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA).
- The Chicago Metropolitan Area: Long-term plans include the construction of the new $500 million Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park to connect Urbana-Champaign to a growing quantum hub in Chicago.
A Legacy of Innovation
Grainger College of Engineering has a long history of creating ground-breaking inventions, such as the first visible LED and Mosaic, the first contemporary web browser. This tradition is carried on by the Public Quantum Network, which makes sure that everyone may benefit from the upcoming technological revolution.
The “Quantum Age” is more than just a subject for science magazines to the people of Urbana-Champaign; it’s something they can interact with at their local library. Although the physics of the subatomic realm may be tiny, its influence on society is enormous, as demonstrated by the PQN’s success, which solidifies Illinois’ standing as a global leader in quantum outreach.
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