Quantum network extends the ability to transmit information securely from two-party communication to multi-party communication with arbitrarily long distances. The efficiency of secure communication in a quantum network depends on both the topology of the network and the strategy of communication relays. In this paper, we propose a strategy to build a quantum network integrating various types of quantum secure direct communication (QSDC) schemes. A cost optimization model is presented to measure the cost of transmitting secure messages in a quantum network. Within the model, two types of quantum network strategies, the quantum circuit switching strategy and the quantum packet switching strategy, are proposed and compared. Numerical simulations in a specific network show that the quantum packet switching strategy is more favorable in future quantum networks taking into account robustness and cost required when using different types of QSDC schemes.

Paper link: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10896573