Quantum mechanics for networkers
There is a much talking about quantum communication in wide area networks, but what quantum mechanics really means for networkers stays unclear. But the world's networkers know macroscopic quantum phenomena very well.
Von Christian Schirm - Eigenes Werk, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=68587012
One interpretation of quantum mechanics involves the entanglement of different states, which collapse to the currently measured state during measurement. In essence, this interpretation means that the system is in the determined state immediately after the measurement. It says nothing about how the system will evolve.
Networkers are familiar with the problem of purchasing cable connections:
- The terminations of the connection are part of the contract and therefore fixed boundary conditions. The route the wire will take is unknown.
- It is possible to specify a certain route or to get an explicit promise. However, the operator reserves the right to change the route in case of failures or other difficulties.
- The exact route of a connection can only be determined if a (dredger) fault has occurred.
In such a way each purchased connection is a macroscopic quantum effect:
- The digger measuring tool detects the location of a pipeline at the time of measurement.
- With the impact of the excavator damage, the location of the pipeline is reliably determined.
- When the damage is fixed, a new functional state is achieved, which may have been repaired on site or relocated.
- The new cable route is therefore a new macroscopic quantum phenomenon.