Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) announced a research prototype called the Universal Quantum Switch designed to connect quantum computing systems from different manufacturers that use various encoding methods.

The device addresses a technical barrier in quantum networking by routing quantum information between systems while preserving it. The switch includes a patented conversion engine that translates between different encoding and entanglement modalities at input and output.

In proof-of-concept experiments conducted by Cisco researchers, the switch preserved quantum information with less than 4% degradation in encoding and entanglement fidelity. The device operates at room temperature and works over standard telecommunications fiber infrastructure.

The switch supports multiple quantum encoding modalities including polarization, time-bin, frequency-bin, and path encoding. Testing has been completed with polarization encoding, while support for time-bin and frequency-bin encoding is built into the design for future validation.

Key technical specifications include sub-nanosecond electro-optic switching capabilities, with connections reconfiguring in as little as 1 nanosecond, and power consumption of less than 1 milliwatt.

"Reaching this milestone is a pivotal moment for our quantum program and a testament to the transformative potential of quantum networking," said Vijoy Pandey, senior vice president and general manager of Outshift, Cisco's Emerging Technologies and Incubation Group.

The device is part of Cisco's broader quantum networking portfolio, which includes a quantum network entanglement chip and a network-aware quantum compiler. These technologies were developed at Cisco's quantum laboratories in Santa Monica, California.

Cisco has established strategic collaborations with IBM, Qunnect, and Atom Computing to advance quantum networking capabilities. The complete research findings are expected to be published in an upcoming paper on ArXiv.