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Ingegneria Sismica

Quantum Encryption Techniques for Securing Low-Voltage Communication Systems in Next-Generation Data Transmission Networks

Erwei Tian

Published Apr 30, 2026• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Low-voltage communication systems in next-generation data transmission networks connect smart meters, feeder controllers, EV chargers, and distributed energy resources; however, the dense topological structure they have and the limited abilities of their endpoints make the direct deployment on quantum hardware be not practical. In order to solve this restriction, this article puts forward a Hybrid Quantum Encryption Scheme for Low-Voltage Systems (HQES-LV), which keeps quantum key distribution on backbone and gateway layers, uses a post-quantum authenticated control plane, and gives lightweight session protection to edge devices by means of risk-adaptive key renewal. A literature-calibrated digital twin is constructed to simulate mixed control, telemetry, and maintenance traffic, along with replay attacks, man-in-the-middle probing, quantum channel degradation, and gateway outages. Result data indicate that in the pressure condition, the HQES-LV can cut control waiting time down to 6.1 ms, hold the possibility of secret information leakage to 0.4%, and make the time of getting back to normal shorter to 6.7 s. Under a 1.2 p.u. load, it maintains 7.3 ms latency and 98.4% session establishment success. When QBER rises to 5.5%, the proposed scheme still preserves 58.9% effective key availability and 96.7% packet delivery. These findings indicate that practical quantum security for low-voltage systems should be realized through hierarchical orchestration rather than endpoint quantumization, and that the combination of QKD backbone supply, post-quantum fallback, and the adaptive session arrangement can provide a path that is more ready for deployment for future electric power communication networks.

DOI
10.65102/is20261017

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Low-voltage communication systems in next-generation data transmission networks connect smart meters, feeder controllers, EV chargers, and distributed energy resources; however, the dense topological structure they have and the limited abilities of their endpoints make the direct deployment on quantum hardware be not practical. In order to solve this restriction, this article puts forward a Hybrid Quantum Encryption Scheme for Low-Voltage Systems (HQES-LV), which keeps quantum key distribution on backbone and gateway layers, uses a post-quantum authenticated control plane, and gives lightweight session protection to edge devices by means of risk-adaptive key renewal. A literature-calibrated digital twin is constructed to simulate mixed control, telemetry, and maintenance traffic, along with replay attacks, man-in-the-middle probing, quantum channel degradation, and gateway outages. Result data indicate that in the pressure condition, the HQES-LV can cut control waiting time down to 6.1 ms, hold the possibility of secret information leakage to 0.4%, and make the time of getting back to normal shorter to 6.7 s. Under a 1.2 p.u. load, it maintains 7.3 ms latency and 98.4% session establishment success. When QBER rises to 5.5%, the proposed scheme still preserves 58.9% effective key availability and 96.7% packet delivery. These findings indicate that practical quantum security for low-voltage systems should be realized through hierarchical orchestration rather than endpoint quantumization, and that the combination of QKD backbone supply, post-quantum fallback, and the adaptive session arrangement can provide a path that is more ready for deployment for future electric power communication networks.
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The rapid development of quantum computing presents a substantial threat to traditional cryptographic algorithms, particularly those relying on mathematical problems such as integer factorization and elliptic curve operations. As a response, the cryptographic community has accelerated the design of post-quantum cryptographic schemes that can withstand attacks from both classical and quantum computers. However, many of these new schemes exhibit inherent trade-offs between performance, key sizes, and implementation complexity. To address this, we propose a novel hybrid cryptographic framework tailored for secure and efficient data transmission in future quantum-aware environments. The proposed system combines three algorithmic paradigms: a lattice-based encryption method for fast and lightweight data protection, a hash-based signature mechanism for authenticity, and a code-based key exchange method to ensure session confidentiality. This layered integration is designed to capitalize on each algorithm’s strengths while mitigating individual limitations. The system is implemented using modular components in a testbed simulating real-world deployments, and its performance is benchmarked across multiple metrics including encryption latency, signature generation time, key sizes, and throughput. Comparative results indicate that the hybrid approach outperforms monolithic schemes in critical areas such as execution time and cryptographic strength under quantum adversary models. The findings support the practicality of using multiple post-quantum primitives in tandem to build robust communication systems. This research contributes a realistic implementation and evaluation of post-quantum security models and highlights key directions for future research and standardization efforts as the global transition to quantum-safe infrastructure begins.
The high pace of quantum computing development presents a serious risk to classical cryptographic systems like RSA and ECC in that quantum-resilient communication systems must be developed. The present paper will suggest Quantum Blind Signature-based Hybrid Quantum Key Distribution (QKD -QBS) to provide secure and authenticated quantum communication. The proposed architecture uses both BB84 and Decoy-State QKD protocols with Quantum Blind Signature (QBS) authentication layer in order to support quantum key generation and verification of entities in the same session. The framework is simulated and tested with IBM Qiskit Aer simulator in realistic channel noise situations. Quantum Bit Error Rate (QBER), Secret Key Retention (SKR), Quantum Entropy (H), Authentication Latency and Security Index (SI) are used as performance evaluation metrics. The experimental data show that the QBER is low (0.34%), SKR is high (92.4%), entropy is nearly ideal (H=0.99H=0.99H=0.99) with the lowest authentication latency (0.17 ms), which proves the fact that the integration of QBS does not reduce the efficiency of the key generation but the reliability of authentication. The hybrid framework proposed has information-theoretic security using the principles of quantum mechanics and strong resistance to impersonation, re-play and man in the middle attacks. The findings show that QKDQBS model provides a scalable and solid platform of next generation secure communication systems, such as IoT,5G/6G5 \mathrm{G} / 6 \mathrm{G}5G/6Gnetworks, and cloud-based quantum systems.
The evolution of smart grids necessitates the deployment of highly secure communication protocols, particularly for critical infrastructure such as Distribution Ring Network Cabinets (RMUs). In this work, we present an integrated cryptographic framework that combines Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) with an SM2-based SPEKE protocol to establish a resilient end-to-end secure communication channel. Initially, QKD is employed—using, for instance, the BB84 protocol—to generate a quantum key with information-theoretic security guar- antees. In parallel, an SM2-enhanced SPEKE protocol is used to perform mutual authentication through elliptic curve-based ephemeral key exchange and identity binding, thereby deriving an authentication key. These two independent keys are then combined with a randomly generated salt via a HMAC-based Key Derivation Function (HKDF) to derive a robust session key. The session key is subsequently utilized to secure data transmissions through symmetric encryption, effectively mitigating threats from eavesdropping, man-in-the-middle, replay, and side-channel attacks. Comprehensive theoretical analysis and preliminary evaluations suggest that our layered approach not only bridges quantum and classical cryptographic techniques but also meets the stringent security and performance requirements of modern power system communications. This work provides a promising pathway toward future-proofing secure communication in next-generation smart grids.
The existence of quantum computing presents an existential threat to the traditional cryptographic algorithms, and there is a need to create communication mechanisms that are fundamentally secure. In this regard, the concept of Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) provides information-theoretic security, which is founded on quantum mechanics. Nevertheless, conventional QKD protocols have serious shortcomings such as lack of distance in communication, vulnerability to side-channel attacks, and inability to support the large-scale heterogeneous network. We suggest that HQNet-QKD a Hybrid Quantum Key Distribution framework can help solve these issues by offering a more secure, scalable and future-proof key exchange framework in hybrid classical-quantum networks. To support multi-layered security, the proposed architecture is a network ensuring the smoothness of decoy-state BB84, Measurement-Device-Independent QKD (MDI-QKD), entanglement/twin-field-based QKD with verifiable Secret Sharing (VSS) and Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC). It provides a complete methodology such as system architecture, mathematical modeling, and end-to-end key synthesis. When used over a distance of 300 km, simulation and testing have shown that HQNet-QKD can achieve up to2.7×2.7 \times2.7×higher secret key rate (SKR) than conventional methods, secret communication at 700 km and resilience to both quantum and classical attacks more than 96%. In addition, the framework guarantees forward secrecy, detector-side immunity, contextbound key derivation, and composability and thus resistant to current and future adversaries. It has a low-computational overhead modular design, making it trivial to deploy in a real world, in applications like quantum-secured 5G backbones, cloud data centers, critical infrastructure, and satellite-based communication systems. The findings make HQNet-QKD a new generation solution to quantum-safe secure communication and the first step towards the implementation of the quantum internet.
The rise of the smart grid, which applies the Internet and smart metering technologies to the power system, results in massive, heterogeneous power data and a large number of attacks on the smart grid and causes great threats to the confidentiality and integrity of the power data. At the same time, with the development of quantum information, it is possible to use quantum cryptography to protect data transmission. Aiming at the problem of data security transmission in smart grid, this paper proposes a lightweight transmission scheme for power data security. In the scheme, we combine quantum cryptography with ”one-time pad” mechanism, use a quantum random number generator which compensates the defects of the traditional random number generator and quantum key distribution protocol which ensure the security of key distribution, and design a new lightweight stream cipher encryption algorithm. Through theoretical analysis and experiments, it is proved that the proposed transmission scheme can ensure the security of power data transmission.