Network-Centric Quantum Communications with Application to Critical Infrastructure Protection

TL;DR

This paper introduces network-centric quantum communications (NQC), a scalable quantum cryptography approach enabling secure key management and digital signatures in optical networks, demonstrated through multi-node experiments and practical electric grid security applications.

Contribution

It presents a novel scalable NQC framework with experimental validation, including quantum identification, secret sharing, and secure multi-party key establishment for optical networks.

Findings

NQC achieves secure, low-latency communication suitable for critical infrastructure.

Experimental multi-node test-bed validates quantum identification and secret sharing.

NQC can retrofit existing optical fiber networks for enhanced security.

Abstract

Network-centric quantum communications (NQC) - a new, scalable instantiation of quantum cryptography providing key management with forward security for lightweight encryption, authentication and digital signatures in optical networks - is briefly described. Results from a multi-node experimental test-bed utilizing integrated photonics quantum communications components, known as QKarDs, include: quantum identification; verifiable quantum secret sharing; multi-party authenticated key establishment, including group keying; and single-fiber quantum-secured communications that can be applied as a security retrofit/upgrade to existing optical fiber installations. A demonstration that NQC meets the challenging simultaneous latency and security requirements of electric grid control communications, which cannot be met without compromises using conventional cryptography, is described.