Scientists Achieve First Entanglement of Three Remote Atomic Qubits in Quantum Network Duke University and IonQ create first three-node quantum network. Researchers from Duke University and IonQ have announced the creation of the first fully distributed three-node quantum network based on individual atomic qubits, according to Quantum Computing Report. The team successfully formed a tripartite entangled state, known as the Greenberger–Horne–Zeilinger state, among three remote quantum nodes connected by photonic channels. What Happened Quantum entanglement allows multiple particles to remain connected regardless of the distance between them. A change in the state of one particle instantly affects the state of others, making this effect a cornerstone for future quantum networks and the quantum internet. Previously, scientists demonstrated entanglement between two remote quantum nodes and even three-node networks on other physical platforms. However, this is the first time such a result has been achieved with individual atomic qubits, which can be independently controlled, read, and scaled for building computational systems. Why It Matters The main challenge of quantum computers is scalability. Building a large quantum processor is extremely difficult due to errors and hardware limitations. As a result, many developers are focusing on a modular architecture: instead of one giant computer, a network of many quantum nodes connected by photons is created. This approach is reminiscent of the development of the classical internet, where computing resources are distributed among many servers. The new experiment is a step in this direction. Researchers demonstrated that individual atomic memories could form a shared quantum state through photonic connections while maintaining high accuracy in quantum operations. During the experiment, the scientists achieved a fidelity of the entangled state at 84–88% and for the first time closed the so-called “detection loophole” for a fully distributed multipartite quantum state. Additionally, the results confirmed the violation of Mermin’s