ORNL & LANL Used EPB’s Fiber-Optic Network to Test QKD System

(Phys.org.news) A team from the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge and Los Alamos national laboratories led a demonstration using an isolated portion of EPB’s fiber-optic network to test quantum key distribution. The team experimented with quantum-based technologies that could improve the cybersecurity, longevity and efficiency of the nation’s power grid. Among other successes, the researchers drastically increased the range that these resources can cover in collaboration with their new industry partner, Qubitekk.
The team tested quantum key distribution, or QKD, systems that harness the power of quantum mechanics to authenticate data and encrypt messages with a secret “key.” Using private encryption methods, the key securely transmits “locked” information from one QKD system to another through a “trusted node” that is virtually invulnerable to cyberattacks.
EPB is a community-based utility and telecommunications company serving Chattanooga, Tennessee.