Resource-efficient parallel entanglement generation for multinode quantum networks via time-bin multiplexing

Nonlocal entanglement generation among multiple remote quantum nodes provides a critical foundation for a variety of counterintuitive quantum applications. The exponential loss of photons transmitting over optical fibers sets an upper limit for entangling these quantum nodes. Here, we propose a resource-efficient and parallel protocol for entangling multiple remote quantum nodes via time-bin multiplexing. The transmission of a single photon with qudit-encoding in the time-bin mode enables entangling multiple stationary qubits in parallel when single photons and individual stationary qubit interfaces are used and photon-state modulations are properly introduced before subsequently impinging the photon into each interface. Our protocol can generate parallel multipartite entanglement among (N≥3) quantum nodes with the dimension of the photonic time bins independent of N, exponentially reducing the requirements for the coherence time of the stationary qubits and for the complexity of the photonic modulations. These distinct features make our protocol particularly advantageous for the development of multinode quantum networks.