We conduct a numerical investigation of fiber-based entanglement distribution over distances of up to 1600 km using a chain of processing-node quantum repeaters. We determine minimal hardware requirements while simultaneously optimizing over protocols for entanglement generation and entanglement purification, as well as over strategies for entanglement swapping. Notably, we discover that through an adequate choice of protocols the hardware improvement cost scales linearly with the distance covered. Our results highlight the crucial role of good protocol choices in significantly reducing hardware requirements, such as employing purification to meet high-fidelity targets and adopting a swap as soon as possible policy for faster rates. To carry out this analysis, we employ an extensive simulation framework implemented with NetSquid, a discrete-event-based quantum-network simulator, and a genetic-algorithm-based optimization methodology to determine minimal hardware requirements.

中文翻译：

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通过联合硬件协议优化降低纠缠分布的硬件要求


我们使用处理节点量子中继器链对长达 1600 公里的距离内基于光纤的纠缠分布进行了数值研究。我们确定最低的硬件要求，同时优化纠缠生成和纠缠纯化的协议以及纠缠交换的策略。值得注意的是，我们发现通过适当选择协议，硬件改进成本与覆盖的距离成线性比例。我们的结果强调了良好的协议选择在显着降低硬件要求方面的关键作用，例如采用纯化来满足高保真度目标，并采用尽快交换政策以获得更快的速率。为了进行此分析，我们采用了由 NetSquid 实现的广泛模拟框架、基于离散事件的量子网络模拟器和基于遗传算法的优化方法来确定最低硬件要求。