Economy
India Demonstrates 5.56-Km Free-Space Quantum Key Distribution Link
QNu Labs, BISAG-N and IIT Gandhinagar demonstrated India’s first 5.56-km free-space quantum key distribution link.
What happened
The 27-28 September field trial established a secure quantum communication channel between BISAG-N and IIT Gandhinagar. Using QNu Labs’ pointing, acquisition and tracking system, the link maintained a quantum bit error rate below 5% and generated secure keys at 230-260 bps. The keys enabled end-to-end encryption and decryption through BISAG-N’s post-quantum “Vaidik Kavach” platform.
Why it matters
The integrated system combines hardware-based quantum key distribution with post-quantum cryptography, maintaining security even when the physical quantum channel is temporarily unavailable.
Source: Press Information Bureau (India)