PaduaQTech has coordinated the deployment of a Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) link between the ICT center of the University of Padua (ASIT) and VSIX: the North-East Internet Exchange Point. Internet Exchange Points are central nodes of the Internet where the traffic of different Internet Service Providers is exchanged to interconnect their users and optimize their performances. QKD exploits the quantum properties of photons to allow two distant partners to produce a shared cryptographic key with arbitrary levels of secrecy. The goal is to increase the security of communications by using these keys for symmetric cryptography algorithms which, with a sufficient secret key rate, can provide unconditionally secure secrecy and authentication.

 

 

The key distribution takes place over about 13km of metropolitan optic fibers. In the first test the system readily generated the equivalent of 917 AES128 keys per minute. The collaboration between PaduaQTech and VSIX will also involve the setup of a randomness beacon based on a Quantum Random Number Generator (QRNG) and the multiplexing of classical and quantum signals on the same fibers. The collaboration will also benefit from the involvement of the partners and adherents of VSIX.