{"id":21040,"library":"cirq-ionq","title":"cirq-ionq","description":"A Cirq package to simulate and connect to IonQ quantum computers. Version 1.6.1, released as part of Cirq v1.6.1. Supports Python >=3.11.0. Releases follow Cirq's release cadence, approximately quarterly.","status":"active","version":"1.6.1","language":"python","source_language":"en","source_url":"https://github.com/quantumlib/cirq","tags":["quantum computing","ionq","cirq","quantum simulator"],"install":[{"cmd":"pip install cirq-ionq","lang":"bash","label":"Install from PyPI"}],"dependencies":[{"reason":"Required for core Cirq functionality.","package":"cirq-core","optional":false}],"imports":[{"note":"cirq-ionq is a separate namespace package; import from cirq_ionq.","wrong":"from cirq.ionq import IonQDevice","symbol":"IonQDevice","correct":"from cirq_ionq import IonQDevice"},{"note":"Same as above; use cirq_ionq.","wrong":"from cirq.ionq import IonQSimulator","symbol":"IonQSimulator","correct":"from cirq_ionq import IonQSimulator"}],"quickstart":{"code":"import cirq\nfrom cirq_ionq import IonQSimulator\n\n# Get API key from environment (set IONQ_API_KEY)\nimport os\napi_key = os.environ.get('IONQ_API_KEY', '')\nif not api_key:\n    print('Set IONQ_API_KEY environment variable')\n    exit(1)\n\nsimulator = IonQSimulator(api_key=api_key)\nq0, q1 = cirq.LineQubit.range(2)\ncircuit = cirq.Circuit(cirq.H(q0), cirq.CNOT(q0, q1), cirq.measure(q0, q1))\nresult = simulator.run(circuit, repetitions=100)\nprint(result.histogram(key='0,1'))","lang":"python","description":"Run a Bell state circuit on the IonQ simulator."},"warnings":[{"fix":"Upgrade Python to 3.11 or later.","message":"Python 3.11 minimum: From version 1.6.0, cirq-ionq requires Python >=3.11.0. Older Python versions will fail to install.","severity":"breaking","affected_versions":">=1.6.0"},{"fix":"Use `from cirq_ionq import IonQSimulator`.","message":"Import from cirq_ionq not cirq.ionq: The correct import path is `from cirq_ionq import ...`. Using `cirq.ionq` will raise ImportError.","severity":"gotcha","affected_versions":"all"},{"fix":"Set `IONQ_API_KEY` env var or use `IonQSimulator(api_key=...)` as documented.","message":"API key via environment variable: The IonQ API key must be set via the `IONQ_API_KEY` environment variable or passed to the sampler constructor. Passing via `cirq_ionq.Service` constructor is deprecated.","severity":"deprecated","affected_versions":">=1.6.0"}],"env_vars":null,"last_verified":"2026-04-27T00:00:00.000Z","next_check":"2026-07-26T00:00:00.000Z","problems":[{"fix":"Run `pip install cirq-ionq` and import as `from cirq_ionq import IonQDevice`.","cause":"cirq-ionq not installed or imported incorrectly (e.g., `cirq.ionq`).","error":"ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'cirq_ionq'"},{"fix":"Set the `IONQ_API_KEY` environment variable to a valid IonQ API key.","cause":"Invalid or missing API key. The IonQ API key is not set or is incorrect.","error":"ionq_rest: (403) Forbidden"},{"fix":"Provide API key via environment variable or constructor argument.","cause":"Similar to above; API key not provided.","error":"google.api_core.exceptions.PermissionDenied: 403 The request is missing a valid API key."}],"ecosystem":"pypi","meta_description":null,"install_score":null,"install_tag":null,"quickstart_score":null,"quickstart_tag":null}