QEC Interface for real-time quantum error correction - Part 1

The interaction of a control system and a quantum error correction (QEC) system needs to be seamless, reliable and real-time to enable a quantum computer to operate in a fault-tolerant way. Regardless of whether these two systems are separated physically, or positioned on the same hardware platform, we must consider how they exchange data and in what formats to reach efficient quantum computing sooner.

We propose a quantum error correction interface (QECI) to describe the format and messages sent between a control system and a QEC system. We describe how the specification of the QEC interface allows compatibility of any control system and any QEC system increasing the interoperability of solutions in the ecosystem, reducing fragmentation, lowering the barrier to entry for new players and working towards a standard way to verify and validate systems. We present the specification in three layers, physical, data and protocol, and show how these layers ensure reliable transfer of both configuration and QEC-specific messages.