Enhancing Satellite Quantum Key Distribution with Dual Band Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces

TL;DR

This paper introduces a dual-band reconfigurable intelligent surface system for satellite communications that enhances quantum key distribution and classical data transmission, improving security and reliability through adaptive optimization.

Contribution

It proposes a novel dual-band RIS architecture that independently optimizes quantum and classical channels in real time, integrating quantum and classical communication within a unified satellite system.

Findings

QBER reduced from 2.5% to 0.7%.

Secure key rate increased to over 30,000 bits/sec.

Classical RF SNR improved by about 3 dB.

Abstract

This paper presents a novel system architecture for hybrid satellite communications, integrating quantum key distribution (QKD) and classical radio frequency (RF) data transmission using a dual-band reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS). The motivation is to address the growing need for global, secure, and reliable communications by leveraging the security of quantum optical links and the robustness of classical RF channels within a unified framework. By employing a frequency-selective RIS, the system independently optimizes both quantum (850 nm) and classical (S-band) channels in real time, dynamically adapting to environmental fluctuations such as atmospheric turbulence and rain attenuation. The joint optimization of the quantum bit error rate (QBER) and the classical signal-to noise ratio (SNR) is formulated as a quadratic unconstrained binary optimization (QUBO) problem, enabling efficient adaptive phase control utilizing both quantum and classical computational methods. Comprehensive theoretical modeling and simulations, benchmarked against experimental data from the Micius satellite, demonstrate substantial performance gains. Notably, the RIS assisted system reduces QBER from approximately 2.5% to 0.7%, increases the secure key rate (SKR) to over 30,000 bits per second, and enhances classical RF SNR by about 3 dB at high elevation angles. These results illustrate the practical potential of hybrid RIS-assisted satellite links to deliver robust, efficient, and secure global communications.