In a first, scientists sent quantum messages a record distance over a traditional network

Scientists have sent quantum information across a record-breaking 158 miles using ordinary computers and fiber-optic cables.

- Aylin Woodward

It is the first time coherent quantum communication-an ultrasecure means of transmitting data-has been achieved using existing telecommunications infrastructure, without the expensive cryogenic cooling that is typically required.

"Our equipment was running alongside the fibers that we use for regular communication literally buried underneath the roads and train stations," said Mirko Pittaluga, a physicist and lead author of a study published Wednesday in Nature describing the work.

Integrating the technology into existing infrastructure using largely off-the-shelf equipment is a key step in expanding the accessibility of quantum communication and its use in encrypting information for more secure transmission of data, according to multiple physicists and engineers who weren't involved in the study.

"This is about as real-world as one could imagine," said David Awschalom, a professor of physics and molecular engineering at the University of Chicago who wasn't a part of the new work. "It's an impressive, quite beautiful demonstration."

Classical digital information is communicated over the internet in units known as bits that have fixed values of 1 or 0. In contrast, quantum information is transmitted in qubits, which can store multiple values at once, making quantum communications more secure.