This was not a laboratory project. QKD was deployed on real fiber routes in an urban environment, integrated with 5G networks, IPsec and MACsec, without rebuilding the existing infrastructure.
Why QKD and Why Now?
5G networks, cloud computing, and the growing scale of cyber threats create new security requirements for infrastructure. Classical encryption based on mathematical algorithms is sufficient today, but not in the perspective of quantum computers capable of breaking RSA in hours.
QKD (Quantum Key Distribution) solves this problem at the source. Instead of relying on computational difficulty, it bases security on the laws of quantum physics.
Every eavesdropping attempt on a fiber irreversibly changes the state of photons, and cryptographic keys cannot be copied or intercepted — even with quantum computers.
Project Objectives
As part of the development of the national PIONIER-Q infrastructure and the construction of an environment for 5G networks, the project had two equal objectives: creating a research platform for testing QKD under conditions close to real operator systems, and launching an environment enabling the testing of deployment scenarios. Secure transmission between network nodes, laboratories, data centres, and critical systems.
What Was Specifically Deployed?
01
QKD devices for quantum key generation and distribution
A complete hardware set for generating keys based on the laws of quantum physics — every attempt to intercept a photon irreversibly changes its state and is immediately detected.
Quantum layer
02
Data encryption systems integrated with QKD
Encryptors using keys delivered by QKD to encrypt transmission in real time — without changing the existing network layer.
Encryption layer
03
Integration with IPsec and MACsec on existing infrastructure
Classical security mechanisms use keys delivered by QKD — without rebuilding the network, without a maintenance window, without any service interruption.
Backwards compatibility
04
Urban architecture — real fiber routes
Deployment on real routes in an urban environment as part of the PIONIER-Q network and 5G environment — not in a closed laboratory. The first such operational deployment in Poland.
First in Poland
The project covered the supply and commissioning of a complete set of QKD devices for quantum key generation and distribution, data encryption systems, and the infrastructure integrating everything with the existing fiber network. The architecture was designed in an urban model, operating on real routes — not in a closed laboratory.
Key requirement: full compatibility with classical security mechanisms IPsec and MACsec. Existing systems could use keys delivered by QKD without any changes to the network layer.
Results and Significance of the Deployment
Key result
QKD as part of production infrastructure
Experimental technology became an integral part of a live network — not alongside it, but within it.
First operational PL
No rebuild
Zero changes to the existing network layer
IPsec and MACsec operate with QKD keys without modification — full backwards compatibility.
Plug-in, not rebuild
Environment
Urban network + 5G + PIONIER-Q
Real fiber routes in the city. Testing under operator conditions, not laboratory conditions.
Real environment
Market direction
From universities to operators and DCs
A deployment model replicable by telecommunications operators, data centres, and the financial sector.
Scalable model
QKD has ceased to be an experimental technology and has become an integral element of functioning network infrastructure. The deployment demonstrated that quantum security can be effectively integrated with fiber networks and 5G environments, without rebuilding existing infrastructure.
What Does This Mean for the Market?
This deployment sets the direction in which critical infrastructure is heading in the coming years — from laboratories and universities, through telecommunications operators, to data centres and the financial sector. QKD is ceasing to be a promise of the future and is becoming a real tool for building secure next-generation networks.
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FAQ — QKD in Urban and 5G Networks
Yes — and this is one of the key conclusions from the described deployment. The QKD system was integrated with the existing fiber network without changing the network layer. Classical security mechanisms IPsec and MACsec could use keys delivered by QKD without any modifications on the network side. QKD works as a layer added to the existing infrastructure — not as a replacement for it.
Yes. QKD does not require separate dark fiber. The quantum signal and classical data traffic can share the same fiber through WDM multiplexing, provided proper spectral separation. In the described deployment, the architecture was based on real fiber routes in an urban environment — not in a closed laboratory. This demonstrates that QKD is ready to operate under operator conditions.
In the described project, QKD was deployed in parallel with the 5G environment as part of the PIONIER-Q infrastructure. Quantum keys are distributed through a Key Management System (KMS) to encryption devices handling data transmission — regardless of whether the traffic originates from a 5G network, a data centre, or another node. The QKD layer is transparent to the transport layer — the 5G network does not "see" QKD, but uses the keys that QKD delivers.
Classical encryption bases its security on the computational difficulty of mathematical problems — RSA, public key algorithms. A quantum computer running Shor’s algorithm would break RSA-2048 in hours. QKD bases its security on the laws of quantum physics: every attempt to intercept a photon irreversibly changes its state and is immediately detected. No algorithm and no computer — classical or quantum — can circumvent this. This is information-theoretic security — mathematically proven, not estimated.
QKD solves one specific problem: the secure distribution of encryption keys between two points. These keys are then used to encrypt transmission using standard algorithms — AES, one-time pad. QKD does not encrypt data directly and does not replace data-at-rest protection systems. It protects only the key exchange channel — but that channel is the foundation of every transmission encryption. It also does not replace firewalls, EDR, or IAM.
Primarily organisations that transmit data requiring long-term confidentiality between locations in a city or region — data centres, financial institutions, telecommunications operators, critical infrastructure, public administration. The deployment described in this case study demonstrates that QKD in an urban network is operationally ready — it does not require a special environment, works on existing fiber, and integrates with what you already have.
PIONIER-Q is the national quantum communication infrastructure in Poland, developed as part of the broader EuroQCI initiative — the European Quantum Communication Infrastructure funded by the EU. Poland is part of it. The described deployment is one of the nodes of this infrastructure — it demonstrates that QKD can operate in an urban environment and is ready to be extended to further nodes of the national network. Connecting to an existing EuroQCI node may be significantly cheaper than building dedicated infrastructure from scratch.
Nearly 300 coherent QSFP28 100G 0 dBm modules by GBC Photonics were deployed in the Orange Polska network — the largest implementation of its kind in Poland.
The backbone network was approaching the limits of its capacity. Classical scaling was becoming increasingly expensive. The operator decided on a thorough modernization toward an IP over DWDM architecture — no downtime, no new cable layer.
