Nebraska Engineer Wins DOE Early Career Award for Quantum Networking Research
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Yanan (Laura) Wang, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, has received an $876,663 Department of Energy Early Career Research Program award — a competitive grant given to individual researchers in the early stages of their careers, not to departments or institutions — to tackle one of quantum networking’s most persistent bottlenecks. The five-year project, running through August 2030, focuses on enabling communication between individual quantum computers by bridging the fundamental frequency mismatch between the microwave signals used inside today’s machines and the optical frequencies required for long-distance fiber transmission. Without that bridge, quantum computers remain isolated from one another regardless of their individual power. “It’s like building a network of high-capacity power plants without the transmission lines needed to connect them into a grid,” Wang said, describing the gap her research aims to close. Microwave-Optical Frequency Mismatch Hinders Quantum Computer Networking A fundamental incompatibility in signal frequencies currently prevents the realization of a fully connected quantum internet, hindering the potential of these powerful machines to collaborate on complex problems. While quantum computers promise to revolutionize fields from medicine to materials science, their ability to function as a networked system remains a significant challenge; individual machines, even those developed by industry leaders like IBM and Google, struggle to communicate effectively over long distances. “The computation unit and the communication unit have this huge frequency mismatch,” Wang explained, necessitating a bridge to transfer the information between them. Her research, supported by a five-year, $876,663 Department of Energy Early Career Research Program award running through August 2030, focuses on developing this crucial link. Wang’s team is using quantum-grade mechanical resonators and waveguides constructed from van der Waals-layered crystals, materials like graphene, to facilitate this signal conversion. These atomically thin materials possess exceptional strength, making them ideal for building high-performance mechanical devices capable of interacting with both microwave and optical signals. “They are just atomically thin, but the in-plane covalent bonds are really strong,” Wang noted, drawing a comparison to the robust carbon structure of diamond. This work aims to move beyond isolated quantum computers; Wang stated that current commercial systems focus on the individual computer itself and not connecting units through a network, envisioning a future where quantum machines can collaborate seamlessly, much like their classical counterparts. Van der Waals Crystals Enable Phononic-Optomechanical Quantum Circuits The current state of quantum computing, while promising increased processing power, is hampered by a fundamental limitation: existing machines struggle to communicate effectively with each other, hindering the development of a true quantum network. Unlike classical computers seamlessly connected by the internet, quantum systems remain largely isolated, functioning as individual units rather than a collaborative whole. Yanan (Laura) Wang, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at Nebraska Engineering, is addressing this challenge by developing a critical “bridge” to facilitate communication between quantum computers, a project bolstered by an $876,663 award from the U.S. Department of Energy that extends through August 2030. This work aims to resolve a significant engineering problem within quantum technology, specifically the incompatibility between the frequencies used for computation and communication, allowing for the translation of information between the two disparate systems and overcoming what Wang describes as a “huge frequency mismatch.” These integrated quantum photonic and phononic circuits will function as essential connectors between quantum processors and communication lines, enabling coherent information processing and quantum signal routing. Going from the classical (system) to quantum is a natural transition, but it’s like things were for personal computer users in the 1990s when the internet started to become more commonly used. Source: https://engineering.unl.edu/260402/news/ece/laura_wang_doecareer/ Tags: Dr. Donovan Dr. Donovan is a futurist and technology writer covering the quantum revolution. Where classical computers manipulate bits that are either on or off, quantum machines exploit superposition and entanglement to process information in ways that classical physics cannot. Dr. Donovan tracks the full quantum landscape: fault-tolerant computing, photonic and superconducting architectures, post-quantum cryptography, and the geopolitical race between nations and corporations to achieve quantum advantage. The decisions being made now, in research labs and government offices around the world, will determine who controls the most powerful computers ever built. Latest Posts by Dr. Donovan: Rigetti Ships 108 Qubit Device. April 8, 2026 IQM Lands World-First Private Enterprise Quantum Sale with 54-Qubit System April 7, 2026 Anthropic’s Compute Capacity Doubles: 1,000+ Customers Spend $1M+ April 7, 2026