Reference frame agreement in quantum networks

Abstract

In order to communicate information in a quantum network effectively, all network nodes should share a common reference frame. Here, we propose to study how well m nodes in a quantum network can establish a common reference frame from scratch, even though t of them may be arbitrarily faulty. We present a protocol that allows all correctly functioning nodes to agree on a common reference frame as long as not more than t < m/3 nodes are faulty. Our protocol furthermore has the appealing property that it allows any existing two-party protocol for reference frame agreement to be lifted to a protocol for a quantum network.