prCEN/CLC/TR XXX

Layer model of Quantum Computing prCEN/CLC/TR XXX

Scope

This document describes a layer model that covers the entire stack of a quantum computer. The group of lower-level (hardware)
layers are organized in different hardware stacks tailored to different hardware architectures , while the group of higher-level (software)
layers are built o n to p o f th ese an d exp ected to be co mmo n fo r all q uan tum co mp utin g systems. The higher-up in the stack, the more
ag n o stic it will be fro m th e un d erlyin g h ard ware. Red ucin g th e d ep en d en cies between h ig h er an d lo wer layers is a crucial p o int for
o p timised q uan tum co mp utatio n s.
Th is d o cumen t is limited to a h ig h-level (fun ctio n al) d escrip tio n o f th e layers in vo lved . Ad d itio n al d etails o f th e in d ivid ual layers will be
described in other, future, CEN/T Rs .