# EQARO-ECS: Efficient Quantum ARO-Based Edge Computing and SDN Routing Protocol for IoT Communication to Avoid Desertification

## TL;DR

This paper introduces a new IoT routing protocol using quantum computing and AI to monitor and prevent desertification by improving energy efficiency and data analysis speed.

## Contribution

The novel contribution is the development of EQARO-ECS, a quantum-enhanced routing protocol for IoT that reduces energy consumption and avoids desertification.

## Key findings

- The EQARO-ECS protocol improves data analysis speed and avoids local optima using quantum-enhanced ARO.
- The protocol increases network lifetime and accuracy by reducing energy depletion compared to other algorithms.
- A new objective function effectively considers desertification parameters, communication cost, and energy consumption.

## Abstract

Desertification is the impoverishment of fertile land, caused by various factors and environmental effects, such as temperature and humidity. An appropriate Internet of Things (IoT) architecture, routing algorithms based on artificial intelligence (AI), and emerging technologies are essential to monitor and avoid desertification. However, the classical AI algorithms usually suffer from falling into local optimum issues and consuming more energy. This research proposed an improved multi-objective routing protocol, namely, the efficient quantum (EQ) artificial rabbit optimisation (ARO) based on edge computing (EC) and a software-defined network (SDN) concept (EQARO-ECS), which provides the best cluster table for the IoT network to avoid desertification. The methodology of the proposed EQARO-ECS protocol reduces energy consumption and improves data analysis speed by deploying new technologies, such as the Cloud, SDN, EC, and quantum technique-based ARO. This protocol increases the data analysis speed because of the suggested iterated quantum gates with the ARO, which can rapidly penetrate from the local to the global optimum. The protocol avoids desertification because of a new effective objective function that considers energy consumption, communication cost, and desertification parameters. The simulation results established that the suggested EQARO-ECS procedure increases accuracy and improves network lifetime by reducing energy depletion compared to other algorithms.