Montana State University (MSU) has deployed Qunnect’s Carina product suite to establish a groundbreaking quantum entanglement network—bringing entanglement distribution onto campus-scale telecommunications fiber and strengthening MSU’s role as a national leader in quantum innovation. This deployment was officially announced in Qunnect’s press release.
MSU has been working with Qunnect’s technology for the past year while exploring new research use cases for quantum networking. With the Carina deployment, MSU is now positioned to support real-world demonstrations and applications that extend far beyond cryptography, helping accelerate practical quantum networking research and industry adoption.
This milestone supports MSU’s growing quantum ecosystem and aligns with the launch of QCORE, Montana State University’s Applied Quantum CORE initiative focused on advancing quantum science through research, education, and partnership.
Building an Integrated Quantum Environment at MSU
MSU’s quantum entanglement network anchors an integrated campus environment that includes quantum computers and advanced quantum sensing technologies. Together, these capabilities create a powerful testbed for quantum demonstrations and applications that support the future of:
- Secure quantum communication
- Distributed quantum computing
- Quantum-enabled sensing systems
- Scalable quantum network infrastructure
This expansion also positions MSU to attract new research funding, high-tech partnerships, and top scientific talent—driving both visibility and economic growth for the state of Montana.
A Proven Quantum Networking Platform with Global Deployments
Qunnect’s Carina product suite is already serving as the backbone of major quantum networking initiatives worldwide, including:
- GothamQ, Qunnect’s quantum network connecting government, national labs, universities, and industry partners across New York City
- BearlinQ, Deutsche Telekom’s quantum network initiative deployed through Berlin, Germany
The Berlin network has achieved record-breaking distances in quantum entanglement distribution since its deployment in 2024, marking a major advancement in real-world quantum networking performance.
Hands-On Quantum Networking Infrastructure for Research and Innovation
According to Prof. Krishna Rupavatharam, CTO of QCORE at MSU, access to this infrastructure is a major accelerator for both student learning and scientific discovery.
“Qunnect’s technologies have given our students and researchers the infrastructure on which we can explore and innovate on quantum networks. Having hands-on access to photonic quantum networking technologies empowers us to advance our quantum efforts more rapidly, and accelerate real-world use cases for quantum for science and industry.”
What Makes Qunnect’s Carina Product Suite Unique
The Carina product suite integrates key quantum networking components into a single rack-mount unit designed for real-world deployment on standard telecom fiber.
Carina combines:
- Atom-based entangled-photon generators
- Single photon counting detectors with high-resolution time tagging
- Adaptive polarization compensation, entanglement validation, and orchestration
Key technical features include:
- High-rate entangled pair generation at telecom wavelengths for fiber spans up to 100 km
- Real-time polarization stabilization to maintain fidelity across changing environmental conditions
- Modular integration with existing DWDM networks and classical data channels
Qunnect’s atom-based platform aligns closely with MSU’s quantum research goals by delivering high-rate photon pairs with sub-GHz linewidth—enabling broader and brighter research applications than many crystal-based approaches.
Expanding Quantum Networks Beyond the Lab
Noel Goddard, CEO of Qunnect, emphasized that this deployment reflects MSU’s leadership in quantum innovation and its momentum toward real-world quantum networking.
“Montana State is a leader in quantum research and has been deploying Qunnect technologies and entanglement sources as part of its ground-breaking experiments for the past year. Now with Carina, MSU is taking the next step in moving practical quantum networks out of the lab and into real-world research deployments.”
Advancing Quantum Innovation Through QCORE
The Carina deployment represents a major step forward for MSU’s QCORE initiative, supporting a campus-wide foundation for quantum research, experimentation, and partnership.
With this quantum entanglement network in place, MSU researchers and collaborators will be able to explore next-generation quantum networking applications with real-world infrastructure—accelerating Montana’s role in shaping the future quantum internet.
Learn More
To learn more about Montana State University’s quantum initiatives, visit the official MSU QCORE website and explore how MSU is building the infrastructure for the next era of quantum science.
