“Forging the Future: A Collaborative Vision for Europe’s Quantum Internet”

Ensuring highly secure communication for vital infrastructures and governmental organizations

The European Commission has appointed a partnership of firms and research entities to explore the architecture of the future European quantum communication framework, EuroQCI (quantum communication infrastructure). This initiative will facilitate ultra-secure communication between vital infrastructures and governmental bodies throughout the European Union.

The European partnership, spearheaded by Airbus, includes Leonardo, Orange, PwC France and Maghreb, Telespazio (a joint venture between Leonardo and Thales), the Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR), and the Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca Metrologica (INRiM).

The EuroQCI will amalgamate quantum technologies and systems within terrestrial fiber optic communication networks, featuring a space segment that guarantees comprehensive coverage across the EU and beyond. Ultimately, this will fortify Europe’s encryption methodologies and vital infrastructures like governmental organizations, air traffic control, healthcare facilities, financial institutions, and power distribution networks against existing and future cyber threats.

Since June 2019, 26 Member States have endorsed the EuroQCI Declaration, committing to collaborate with the Commission, supported by the European Space Agency, towards the establishment of a quantum communication framework encompassing the entire EU.

The overarching vision is for the EuroQCI to serve as the foundation of a quantum internet in Europe, linking quantum computers, simulators, and sensors through quantum networks to disseminate information and resources using cutting-edge security protocols.

The initial service to harness this technology will be quantum key distribution (QKD). The QKD service will transmit encryption keys through quantum communication pathways, both terrestrial fiber optic and space-based laser channels. Utilizing quantum photon states ensures that key distribution is impervious to vulnerabilities, unlike conventional methods.

The 15-month investigation will outline the specifics of the end-to-end system and design the terrestrial segment that supports the QKD service. It will also formulate a comprehensive implementation roadmap, including the cost and timeline for each phase of execution. Furthermore, the study will assist the European Commission in crafting an advanced QCI testing and validation infrastructure that incorporates standards. The aim is to deploy a EuroQCI demonstrator by 2024 and an initial operational service by 2027.

The consortium will capitalize on the diverse capabilities of its members, which comprise large system integrators, telecommunications, and satellite communication operators along with service providers and research institutions. The study will enhance and solidify the existing contributions in various quantum initiatives from each consortium member and will benefit from the extensive field expertise of the Italian quantum backbone curtained by CNR and INRiM.