Projects per year
Abstract
Quantum key distribution (QKD) offers future proof security based on fundamental laws
of physics. Long-distance QKD spanning regions such as the United Kingdom (UK) may employ a
constellation of satellites. Small satellites, CubeSats in particular, in low Earth orbit are a relatively
low-cost alternative to traditional, large platforms. They allow the deployment of a large number of
spacecrafts, ensuring greater coverage and mitigating some of the risk associated with availability
due to cloud cover. We present our mission analysis showing how a constellation comprising 15
low-cost 6U CubeSats can be used to form a secure communication backbone for ground-based and
metropolitan networks across the UK. We have estimated the monthly key rates at 43 sites across the
UK, incorporating local meteorological data, atmospheric channel modelling and orbital parameters.
We have optimized the constellation topology for rapid revisit and thus low-latency key distribution.
of physics. Long-distance QKD spanning regions such as the United Kingdom (UK) may employ a
constellation of satellites. Small satellites, CubeSats in particular, in low Earth orbit are a relatively
low-cost alternative to traditional, large platforms. They allow the deployment of a large number of
spacecrafts, ensuring greater coverage and mitigating some of the risk associated with availability
due to cloud cover. We present our mission analysis showing how a constellation comprising 15
low-cost 6U CubeSats can be used to form a secure communication backbone for ground-based and
metropolitan networks across the UK. We have estimated the monthly key rates at 43 sites across the
UK, incorporating local meteorological data, atmospheric channel modelling and orbital parameters.
We have optimized the constellation topology for rapid revisit and thus low-latency key distribution.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 1 |
Pages (from-to) | 7 |
Number of pages | 25 |
Journal | Cryptography |
Volume | 4 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 27 Feb 2020 |
Research Groups and Themes
- Bristol Quantum Information Institute
- QETLabs
- Photonics and Quantum
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Dive into the research topics of 'QUARC: Quantum Research Cubesat—A Constellation for Quantum Communication'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Projects
- 3 Finished
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QSTP: 8031 System Integration & Testing of a WCP QKD Payload to TRL5 QSTP
Rarity, J. G. (Principal Investigator), Lowndes, D. L. D. (Researcher) & Joshi, S. K. (Researcher)
23/04/19 → 30/09/20
Project: Research
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CUBESAT Partnership resource Comms Hub: Phase II
Rarity, J. G. (Principal Investigator)
1/12/18 → 30/11/19
Project: Research
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Copy of Augmentation of space-based QKD with CubeSats
Rarity, J. G. (Principal Investigator)
1/03/18 → 28/02/19
Project: Research