Madrid’s Quantum Communication Network Continues to Grow

(Explica.co) The new quantum communication network in Madrid, called MadQCI (Madrid Quantum Communication Infrastructure), is an infrastructure that integrates quantum communications in conventional optical networks.
It is one of the most important test benches of these characteristics in all of Europe, coordinated by the Center for Computational Simulation (CSC) of the Polytechnic University of Madrid (UPM) In collaboration with Telephone and the Institute IMDEA Software (REDIMadrid).
This network is part of the European OPENQKD project and the first phase of its deployment is already operational. There are currently 16 quantum communications devices, of which 10 have already been deployed and another six are in laboratory testing. To these, another six will be added before the summer, thus completing this first stage.
The infrastructure will also be used to industrialize the technologies developed in projects such as CiViQ, part of the European Quantum Flagship program. This 10-year program is the European commitment to leading the new generation of quantum technologies.
“These technologies are beginning to be mature enough for some of them to make the leap to the market, the so-called ‘quantum key distribution’ being one of the most advanced,” he says. Vicente Martin Ayuso, Researcher in charge of the Quantum Information and Computing Research Group (GIIC) and director of the CSC.