New Delhi: In a major breakthrough for national cyber defence, DRDO in collaboration with IIT Delhi has successfully demonstrated Quantum Secure Communication over free space using quantum entanglement.
Conducted under the DRDO-Industry-Academia Centre of Excellence (DIA-CoE) at IIT Delhi, the quantum secure communication experiment achieved secure quantum key distribution over a distance exceeding 1 kilometer, setting the stage for India’s quantum-powered communication future.
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This technological feat achieved a secure key rate of 240 bits per second with a quantum bit error rate below 7%, proving the feasibility of entanglement-assisted free-space Quantum Key Distribution (QKD).
The innovation paves the way for secure real-time applications in quantum cybersecurity, quantum networks, and the quantum internet.
Speaking on the milestone, Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh commended the accomplishment, stating: “India has entered a new quantum era of secure communication, which will be a game changer in future warfare.”
Funded by DRDO’s Directorate of Futuristic Technology Management (DFTM), the project was executed by Prof Bhaskar Kanseri’s research group, and attended by top defence and academic officials. The quantum secure communication demonstration eliminates the need for costly fiber infrastructure and enables deployment in remote and dense urban environments.
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Key Features of the Quantum Secure Communication Demo:
- Free-space link enabled by entangled photon pairs
- AI-resilient quantum encryption technology for strategic security
- 240 bps key rate with <7% quantum error
- No-fiber dependency, enabling deployment in hard-to-reach areas
- Builds toward quantum networks and next-gen internet
This marks the latest milestone in India’s quantum journey following:
- The first intercity quantum link between Vindhyachal and Prayagraj in 2022
- 100 km entanglement-based QKD over optical fiber demonstrated in 2024
These projects are developed through DIA-CoEs, an initiative by DRDO to collaborate with top Indian academic institutions like IITs and IISc on frontier defence technologies.
Dr Samir V Kamat, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman DRDO, and Prof Rangan Banerjee, Director, IIT Delhi, also lauded the team for this significant advancement in India’s quantum technology capabilities.
