Cardama Santiago, Francisco JavierVázquez Pérez, JorgePiñeiro Pomar, César AlfredoFernández Pena, Anselmo TomásPichel Campos, Juan CarlosGómez, Andrés2025-10-132025-10-132025-07-03Cardama, F. Javier, Vázquez-Pérez, Jorge, Piñeiro, César, Pena, Tomás F., Pichel, Juan C., Gómez, Andrés. (2025). NetQIR: An extension of QIR for distributed quantum computing. "Future Generation Computer Systems", vol. 1741872-7115https://hdl.handle.net/10347/43044The rapid advancement of quantum computing has highlighted the need for scalable and efficient software infrastructures to fully exploit its potential. Current quantum processors face significant scalability constraints due to the limited number of qubits per chip. In response, distributed quantum computing (DQC) — achieved by networking multiple quantum processor units (QPUs)— is emerging as a promising solution. To support this paradigm, robust intermediate representations (IRs) are needed to translate high-level quantum algorithms into executable instructions suitable for distributed systems. This paper presents NetQIR, an extension of Microsoft’s Quantum Intermediate Representation (QIR), specifically designed to facilitate DQC by incorporating new instruction specifications. NetQIR was developed in response to the lack of abstraction at the network and hardware layers identified in the existing literature as a significant obstacle to effectively implementing distributed quantum algorithms. Based on this analysis, NetQIR introduces new essential abstraction features to support compilers in DQC contexts. It defines network communication instructions independent of specific hardware, abstracting the complexities of inter-QPU communication. Although the proposed work allows abstraction of the underlying network, it is important to note that it is intended for the development of high-performance code on future modular quantum architectures. Leveraging the QIR framework, NetQIR aims to bridge the gap between high-level quantum algorithm design and low-level hardware execution, thus promoting modular and scalable approaches to quantum software infrastructures for distributed applications. Furthermore, its design may serve as a foundational component for future implementations of distributed quantum standards such as the Quantum Message Passing Interface (QMPI).eng© 2025 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. Attribution 4.0 Internationalhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Distributed quantum computingQuantum intermediate representationQuantum internetCompilersTeledataTelegateDistributed quantum applicationsComputación cuántica distribuidaRepresentación intermedia cuánticaInternet cuánticoCompiladoresTeledatos3307 Tecnología electrónicajournal article10.1016/j.future.2025.107989open access