Quantum–classical co-simulation for smart grids: a proof-of-concept study on feasibility and obstacles

Abstract

With the rising complexity of our electricity infrastructure, smart grid simulations increasingly rely on co-simulation, which involves jointly executing independent subsystem simulations. However, in large-scale simulation scenarios, such as those involving costly power-flow analysis, co-simulation may experience computational-performance issues. Quantum computing offers a potential solution through quantum–classical co-simulation, in which one or more simulators of an otherwise classical co-simulation are executed on quantum hardware. However, there is no practical realization of this concept that establishes its feasibility. To address this gap, we integrate a quantum power flow simulator with a smart grid co-simulation and conduct an exploratory simulation study using a fictitious case-study scenario. The experiments demonstrate the feasibility of quantum–classical co-simulation; at the same time, they highlight four obstacles to the concept’s realization in practice: (1) To use quantum computing for co-simulation, session-based scheduling is required. (2) Distributed simulation limits possible applications and requires proximity of computing resources. (3) For the efficient extraction of classical information from the quantum states, we need carefully designed operators. (4) Current hardware limitations—such as noise susceptibility and the lack of quantum random access memory—limit practical near-term uses of quantum power flow; therefore, attention should be turned to alternative applications that are more promising in the near term. These findings pave the way for future research on quantum–classical co-simulation and its potential applications in smart grids.