Quantum-Safe-Internet
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Leeds
Department Name: Electronic and Electrical Engineering
Abstract
QSI aims at training a world-class cohort of doctoral researchers (DRs) capable of taking the next essential steps in the highly demanding area of cybersecurity. We aim to build strong lasting links between strategically selected industry and academic partners, in different disciplines, via the development of novel technologies for practical applications in data security. In parallel, we will also combine, via a collaborative long-term interdisciplinary approach, expertise in all relevant communities to address key fundamental problems in secure communications in the quantum era, and the important applications therein. The planned training network will provide research and training opportunities to a new generation of DRs, who, in the long-run, shall address the Grand Challenge of providing "Quantum-Safe Internet", i.e., a communication infrastructure that is secure against not only classical attacks but also those
enabled by quantum technologies. Today's Internet security heavily relies on computational complexity assumptions, and as such is seriously threatened by advancements in quantum computing technologies. Indeed, we have recently witnessed a wave of key developments in this direction by a number of IT giants, e.g., Google, IBM, Microsoft, and Intel. This particularly jeopardizes applications that require long-term security. The number of such applications is continuously growing as more and more of our private information is stored and communicated in a digital way, e.g., electronic health records, which are now required by European legislation to remain secure for a long time. This requires us to urgently develop and implement new solutions, as we plan to do in this Doctoral Network (DN).
enabled by quantum technologies. Today's Internet security heavily relies on computational complexity assumptions, and as such is seriously threatened by advancements in quantum computing technologies. Indeed, we have recently witnessed a wave of key developments in this direction by a number of IT giants, e.g., Google, IBM, Microsoft, and Intel. This particularly jeopardizes applications that require long-term security. The number of such applications is continuously growing as more and more of our private information is stored and communicated in a digital way, e.g., electronic health records, which are now required by European legislation to remain secure for a long time. This requires us to urgently develop and implement new solutions, as we plan to do in this Doctoral Network (DN).
Organisations
- University of Leeds (Lead Research Organisation)
- NTT Basic Research Laboratories (Collaboration)
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (Collaboration)
- University of Vigo (Collaboration)
- NNT Group (Nippon Teleg Teleph Corp) (Project Partner)
- Ruhr University Bochum (Project Partner)
- Cisco Systems Inc (Project Partner)
People |
ORCID iD |
| Mohsen Razavi (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Hanzo L
(2025)
Quantum Information Processing, Sensing, and Communications: Their Myths, Realities, and Futures
in Proceedings of the IEEE
Rey-DomÃnguez J
(2024)
Hacking coherent-one-way quantum key distribution with present-day technology
in Quantum Science and Technology
| Description | Leeds-NTT |
| Organisation | NTT Basic Research Laboratories |
| Country | Japan |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | Myself and the named research to this grant, Mr Javier Rey, visited NTT in April 2024 and conducted research on quantum repeater technologies. I also met with other Japanese researchers active in the field as part of Japan Quantum initiatives. |
| Collaborator Contribution | They hosted myself and Mr Javier Rey for over two weeks during which we have talks and discussed mutual areas of interest. Javier is visiting NTT again this coming April. |
| Impact | A conference paper is coming up shortly and will be presented in Japan. We are working on the journal version, and a follow up to this work where the Japanese partner is expected to play a significant role. |
| Start Year | 2024 |
| Description | Leeds-OIST |
| Organisation | Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology |
| Country | Japan |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | I visited OIST in April 2024 and gave a talk and discussed our research work with scientists there. I was hosted by Bill Munro and Kae Nemoto and have discussions with Nicolo Lo Piparo (who visited us in Nov 2024) and David Elkouss. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The host covered some of my accommodation costs. We started working on some areas of mutual interest, which was followed up by Dr Nicolo Lo Piparo's two-week-long visit back in Nov 2024. The next visit will be in April 2025, where Leeds researcher, Javier Rey will visit OIST. |
| Impact | The work is still in progress. |
| Start Year | 2024 |
| Description | QSI-Vigo |
| Organisation | University of Vigo |
| Department | School of Telecommunications Engineering |
| Country | Spain |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We hosted one of the doctoral researcher from the University of Vigo for five weeks. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The visitor engaged in new research activities, and this is going to continue after his return. |
| Impact | This collaboration has just started but expected to result in some publications in due time. |
| Start Year | 2024 |
| Description | Outreach Activity at Heckmondwike Grammar School |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | We presented the merits of quantum technologies to two age groups (Year10&11 and A level students) at Heckmondwike Grammar School. This is school is selected as the best secondary school of the year in North England, and the level of engagement that we experienced was a testament to their abilities. Each lecture had nearly 30 student attendees and two members of the teaching staff. We engaged in a very live discussion and Q&A session that took nearly 30 minutes in each case, and we also advertised for the QSI art contest that the network is organising. Presentations given by Javier Rey Dominguez, the researcher recruited by the project, and the PI, Mohsen Razavi. Overall, a very satisfactory experience that made the time spent on preparing material and tasks for this event all worth it. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2025 |
| Description | Participation in the BeCurious Live event 2024 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | BeCurious Live is an open-day event organized yearly at the University of Leeds, where families get to interact with researchers from the University. As researchers, we try to communicate the relevance of our work to the general public, with a focus on the younger generations. In this year's event, we displayed a colourful poster, handed out some informative leaflets and prepared several activities/games through which we explained what quantum technologies are about and how they can impact the everyday life in the future. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.leeds.ac.uk/working-region/news/article/5558/get-inspired-at-be-curious-2024 |
| Description | Presentation at the Single Photon Workshop 2024 (Edinburgh) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Presented a research talk at the Single Photon Workshop 2024. The conference took place at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC) from November 18-22, 2024, bringing together experts from academia, industry, and government. My talk, titled "Coherent Quantum Key Distribution Across National Scale Telecommunication Infrastructure," was delivered to an audience of approximately 200 professionals, showcasing Toshiba's latest research in Twin Field Quantum Key Distribution (TF QKD) and its implementation over national-scale telecom infrastructure. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://fitwise.eventsair.com/2024singlephotonworkshop/ |
| Description | QKD Display / Engagement at National Quantum Technologies Showcase 2024 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Hosted stand showcasing QKD R&D at UK Quantum Showcase. Visited by 100s delegates from a range of backgrounds. Our stand sparked lots of questions and discussions with opportunities to explain to visitors about quantum security. Attended by Sergio Juarez, Robert Woodward, and other Toshiba researchers. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://iuk-business-connect.org.uk/events/uk-national-quantum-technologies-showcase-2024/ |
| Description | QSI School of Quantum Cryptography |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | I contributed to the School organised by the QSI network held in Asiago, Italy. The details of this activity can be found here: https://qsi.uvigo.es/conferencias/school-on-quantum-cryptograghy-sqc-padova/ |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://qsi.uvigo.es/conferencias/school-on-quantum-cryptograghy-sqc-padova/ |
| Description | Story of the month for the QSI website |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Submission to the monthly publication in the QSI website involving public-friendly explanations of the topics involved in our research. In particular, my story of the month presented a mock scenario that is used to visualizer the different networking paradigms, and to highlight the open problems in the field of quantum networking. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://qsi.uvigo.es/stories/story-of-the-month-of-february-2024/ |