Viable Satellite Free Space Optical Quantum Key Distribution Technologies (ViSatQT)

主要组织依赖于强加密，包括加密密钥协议的过程。未来的量子计算机有可能破坏基于非对称加密和广泛部署的公钥基础设施的密钥协议方案。如果及时提供商业和技术上可行的卫星量子密钥分发（SatQKD），那么在长距离和没有量子中继器的情况下，可以保持业务连续性（BC）。目前的自由空间光学方法被认为在商业上不可行，因为它们只能在夜间和晴朗的天空条件下运行；以及等待低地球轨道上的卫星。该项目将通过加速SatQKD技术的商业化来解决未来的BC市场，预计价值数十亿英镑，SatQKD技术可在白天、多云天气和其他天气条件下运行。该项目将在空中客车公司的系统背景下结合和调整英国SME公司的技术发展，空中客车公司是英国开发的安全卫星通信系统的主要供应商。该项目的目标是为机构和商业客户准备新的模块化灵活系统架构、技术景观调查和技术开发路线图，以实现更低成本、更长距离、自由空间光量子通信。该项目创新的主要重点是扩展卫星到地面QKD操作的范围，超越目前的技术水平：实现白天操作，云容忍，并达到比现有演示器快几个数量级的密钥分发速率。该项目将影响并增强学术研究、中小企业发展的一致性，以及运行量子安全通信的主要系统集成准备。

Major organisations rely on strong encryption, including the process of encryption key agreement. Future quantum computers have the potential to compromise key agreement schemes based on asymmetric encryption and widely deployed Public Key Infrastructure.Over long distances and without quantum repeaters, Business Continuity (BC) can be maintained if commercially and technically viable Satellite Quantum Key Distribution (SatQKD) becomes available in time. Current free space optical approaches are not considered commercially viable because they can only operate at night time and in clear sky conditions; and by waiting for overhead satellites in Low Earth Orbit.The future BC market, anticipated to be worth billions of pounds, will be addressed by this project through accelerated commercialisation of the SatQKD technologies necessary for operation during daylight hours, cloudy skies and other weather conditions. The project will combine and align technical developments from UK SME's within a system context from Airbus: a major provider of UK-developed secure satellite communication systems.The objective of this project is to prepare new modular flexible system architectures, technology landscape surveys and technology development roadmaps for lower cost, longer range, free space optical quantum communications directed towards institutional and commercial customers.The primary focus of Innovation in this project is to extend the envelope of Satellite-to-Ground QKD operations beyond the current state of the art: to enable daytime operation, cloud tolerance and reach key distribution rates several orders of magnitude faster than existing demonstrators.The project will influence and enhance the coherence of academic research, SME developments, and prime system integration readiness for operational quantum secured communications.