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Scheduling in Quantum Satellite Networks: Fairness and Performance Optimization

Ashutosh Jayant Dikshit, Naga Lakshmi Anipeddi, Prajit Dhara, Saikat Guha, Deirdre Kilbane, Leandros Tassiulas, Don Towsley, Nitish K. Panigrahy

TL;DR

This work tackles scheduling in quantum satellite networks to maximize entanglement distribution while preserving fairness under realistic losses, noise, and weather. It develops an integer linear programming framework (with primary and reflection-based schemes) to optimally assign satellites to ground-station pairs under resource and fidelity constraints, and uses iterative max-min fairness to balance per-pair performance. The study models SPDC-based entanglement sources, atmospheric losses via realistic optics, and inter-satellite relays, and demonstrates through simulations that reflection-based schemes offer higher aggregate EDR in some regimes while fairness policies improve coverage and equity. It also provides a benchmark tool for evaluating alternative transmission policies and highlights open problems like multi-partite entanglement scheduling and constellation design.

Abstract

Quantum satellite networks offer a promising solution for achieving long-distance quantum communication by enabling entanglement distribution across global scales. This work formulates and solves the quantum satellite network scheduling problem by optimizing satellite-to-ground station pair assignments under realistic system and environmental constraints. Our framework accounts for limited satellite and ground station resources, fairness, entanglement fidelity thresholds, and real world non-idealities including atmospheric losses, weather and background noise. In addition, we incorporate the complexities of multi-satellite relays enabled via inter-satellite links. We propose an integer linear programming (ILP) based optimization framework that supports multiple scheduling objectives, allowing us to analyze tradeoffs between maximizing total entanglement distribution rate and ensuring fairness across ground station pairs. Our framework can also be used as a benchmark tool to measure the performance of other potential transmission scheduling policies.

Scheduling in Quantum Satellite Networks: Fairness and Performance Optimization

TL;DR

This work tackles scheduling in quantum satellite networks to maximize entanglement distribution while preserving fairness under realistic losses, noise, and weather. It develops an integer linear programming framework (with primary and reflection-based schemes) to optimally assign satellites to ground-station pairs under resource and fidelity constraints, and uses iterative max-min fairness to balance per-pair performance. The study models SPDC-based entanglement sources, atmospheric losses via realistic optics, and inter-satellite relays, and demonstrates through simulations that reflection-based schemes offer higher aggregate EDR in some regimes while fairness policies improve coverage and equity. It also provides a benchmark tool for evaluating alternative transmission policies and highlights open problems like multi-partite entanglement scheduling and constellation design.

Abstract

Quantum satellite networks offer a promising solution for achieving long-distance quantum communication by enabling entanglement distribution across global scales. This work formulates and solves the quantum satellite network scheduling problem by optimizing satellite-to-ground station pair assignments under realistic system and environmental constraints. Our framework accounts for limited satellite and ground station resources, fairness, entanglement fidelity thresholds, and real world non-idealities including atmospheric losses, weather and background noise. In addition, we incorporate the complexities of multi-satellite relays enabled via inter-satellite links. We propose an integer linear programming (ILP) based optimization framework that supports multiple scheduling objectives, allowing us to analyze tradeoffs between maximizing total entanglement distribution rate and ensuring fairness across ground station pairs. Our framework can also be used as a benchmark tool to measure the performance of other potential transmission scheduling policies.

Paper Structure

This paper contains 24 sections, 9 equations, 19 figures, 2 tables, 2 algorithms.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. System Model
  3. Satellite constellations and ground station pairs
  4. Dual Downlink Entanglement Distribution
  5. Entangled Pair Source
  6. Channel Loss
  7. Channel Noise
  8. Quantum Satellite Scheduling Problem
  9. Special Cases
  10. Single transmitter and single receiver scenario - STSR ($R_g = 1, T_i=1, L_j = 1$)
  11. Single transmitter and multiple receiver scenario - STMR ($R_g = N, T_i=1, L_j = 1$)
  12. Fairness
  13. Quantum Satellite Scheduling Problem: Reflection Based Formulation
  14. Fairness
  15. Performance Evaluation
  16. ...and 9 more sections

Figures (19)

  • Figure 1: Dual downlink architecture for photonic entanglement distribution. The satellite platform consists of spontaneous parametric down conversion (SPDC) based entangled pair sources that produce the state in Eq. \ref{['eqn:srcnative']} and distribute each qubit to the ground stations, with the necessary transmission optics. The ground stations consists of receiver optics and adaptive optics (to minimize atmospheric distortion) that couple into the quantum memory hardware. We assume that the system has perfect timing synchronization, accurate pointing and tracking, and inter-station terrestrial classical communication links that are required for the protocol to succeed.
  • Figure 2: Total (Free space + atmospheric) and atmospheric distances of Satellite-to-ground station channels at time $t$.
  • Figure 3:
  • Figure 4:
  • Figure 6: Dual downlink architecture for Reflection Based Scheme. This architecture involves two satellites: a primary satellite equipped with an entangled photon source and a secondary reflecting satellite. The primary satellite generates a pair of entangled photons, directing one photon to a ground station and the other to the reflecting satellite. The reflecting satellite then forwards the received photon to a second ground station, effectively establishing a dual downlink for entanglement distribution.
  • ...and 14 more figures

Theorems & Definitions (1)

  • Remark 3.0.1