control_node module

class control_node.ControlNode(id, network_type=None)

Bases: Node

Central controller node for managing quantum network switching.

The control node is responsible for:

• Maintaining a central registry mapping node names to their object instances.

• Receiving heralding signals from switches and forwarding correction messages to the relevant quantum nodes.

• Sending switching commands to configure the network, with topology-dependent routing logic (ring, tree, or simple).

• Assigning a unique UUID to each routing request for correlation between switching commands and heralded corrections.

Parameters:

• id (int) – Unique integer identifier for the control node, included in its name as CTRL[{id}].

• network_type (str, optional) –

  Network topology type that determines which internal switching method is used. Supported values are:

  • "ring" – ring topology with intermediate relay configuration.

  • "tree" – hierarchical tree topology with a super-switch.

  • "simple" – single-switch topology.

  Any other value defaults to no-op switching.

__registry

Central mapping of registered node names to their object instances. Used for name → object resolution during switching and correction handling.

Type:

dict[str, Node]

__uuid_queue

Maps request UUIDs to the pair of quantum node names involved in the route.

Type:

dict[str, tuple[str, str]]

ports

Contains the switch_herald input port for receiving heralding messages.

Type:

dict[str, Port]

__logger

Logger instance for controller events.

Type:

logging.Logger

__switch_re

Compiled regex for parsing switch names (e.g., switch_2).

Type:

re.Pattern

__qnode_re

Compiled regex for parsing quantum node names (e.g., qnode_5).

Type:

re.Pattern

Examples

>>> ctrl_node = ControlNode(id=0, network_type="ring")
>>> ctrl_node.register_nodes([node_a, node_b, switch_0, switch_1])
>>> req_id = ctrl_node.request_route("qnode_0", "qnode_3")
>>> isinstance(req_id, str)
True

register_nodes(node_list)

Register a set of nodes with the controller.

Adds node objects to the internal registry so they can be referenced by name during switching and correction handling.

Parameters:

node_list (list[netsquid.nodes.Node]) – List of node objects to register.

request_route(qnode_1_name, qnode_2_name)

Initiate a switching request between two quantum nodes.

Sends topology-dependent switching commands to configure the network, then generates and stores a request UUID to match future heralding corrections to this route.

Parameters:

• qnode_1_name (str) – Name of the first quantum node (e.g., "qnode_0").

• qnode_2_name (str) – Name of the second quantum node.

Returns:

UUID string identifying this routing request.

Return type:

str