Technology hub: Satellite quantum communication
Quantum communication links through satellites or other free-space platforms over long distances.
- Pillar
- Quantum communication
- Related codes
- None: no CPC group, OpenAlex topic or EuroSciVoc concept names this technology precisely.
- Axis in the faceted taxonomy
- Channel: Free-space and satellite links (draft — to be completed by the responsible team)
- Validation
- Proposed — not yet validated by an expert
- Sources of the definition
1 source
- Quantum Flagship: Strategic Research and Industry Agenda (SRIA) for quantum technologies, draft for the second phase of the public consultation; chapter 3, Quantum Sensing & Metrology Roadmap Update 2026 (pp. 75 to 100), chapter 2, Quantum Communication Roadmap Update 2026 (pp. 43 to 74) (read 2026-10-29)
12 confirmed items. Including suggestions by rules or AI, not yet reviewed: 14. Suggestions are counted, not listed.
At a glance
Key items: EU and national projects
Expert review sheet of the faceted taxonomy (every value, definition and source)
Overview
The technology atlas of Satellite quantum communication: its value chain, the documented actors by role, facilities, funding, patents and publications, standards and policy measures on one page, each from a source the portal already publishes. Each section says whether these sources document the technology, show an evidence gap or hold nothing about it.
| Section | State in these sources | Records |
|---|---|---|
| Value chain | No evidence found in these sources | 0 |
| Actors by role | No evidence found in these sources | 0 |
| Facilities and access | No evidence found in these sources | 0 |
| Funding | Documented in these sources | 5 |
| Patents and publications | Documented in these sources | 1 |
| Standards | Documented in these sources | 20 |
| Policy measures | Documented in these sources | 4 |
| Evidence gaps | No evidence found in these sources | 0 |
- Documented in these sources: at least one record of these sources is about this technology.
- Evidence gap in these sources: the parts tree names a stage, but no documented European actor is linked to it here. Evidence gap in these sources, not a finding of dependency.
- No evidence found in these sources: No evidence found in these sources. It means only that these sources hold nothing on it.
Public layer: structure and documented actors only. Actor roles come from typed, dated relationships and are never inferred from shared projects or patents. Supplier assessments of the restricted dependency map are not shown on this public page. No technology readiness level is given.
External context: EPO Observatory: quantum technologies · EPO Deep Tech Finder
Value chain
The stages of this technology in the parts tree, a reference structure from review articles and EU law, with the European companies whose own product page names a product line for the stage or a part under it (the curated supplier directory).
No evidence found in these sources. The parts tree has no platform or part for this technology.
Actors by role
Organisations with a documented relationship to this technology: a product line on the company’s own product page, the host or programme the infrastructure catalogue names for a facility, or the operator of an access route. Each row names its source and the date it was read. Roles are never inferred from taking part in the same project or patent.
| Role | Actors | State | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer or supplier of a part | 0 | No evidence found in these sources | 0 organisations in the table below. |
| Host, operator or access provider | 0 | No evidence found in these sources | 0 organisations in the table below. |
| Funder or programme | 0 | No evidence found in these sources | 0 organisations in the table below. |
| Researcher or developer | 0 | No evidence found in these sources | Organisations confirmed under this technology by the classification; listed in “Organisations and companies” below. Participants in EU-funded projects are counted per pillar in technology intelligence. |
| User | 0 | No evidence found in these sources | These sources record no user of this technology. |
No evidence found in these sources. No product line, facility host, programme or access route is recorded for this technology.
Facilities and access
Facilities of this technology in the infrastructure catalogue, the furthest milestone the deployment tracker evidences for each, and the current access routes that open them.
No evidence found in these sources. The infrastructure catalogue lists no facility for this technology.
Infrastructure and deployment status
1 confirmed item.
Funding
Upcoming work-programme topics in this technology (the EU programme pipeline) and the funding instruments whose stated quantum relevance names it. The awards of its EU-funded projects and the announced funding rounds follow below.
Upcoming topics in the programme pipeline
No evidence found in these sources. No upcoming topic of the pipeline (read 2026-11-01) names this technology.
Pipeline topics of Satellite quantum communication
Funding instruments
| Instrument | Programme | Stated quantum relevance | Why it is shown |
|---|---|---|---|
| EIC Accelerator | Horizon Europe: European Innovation Council | The EIC Work Programme 2026 states that the Accelerator Open call remains available to start-ups and SMEs, including for quantum technologies, with specific safeguards on investments in quantum. | Names its pillar, Quantum communication |
| EIC STEP Scale Up | Horizon Europe: European Innovation Council, Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP) | Quantum technologies are among the digital and deep-tech priority areas, and the EIC Work Programme 2026 says support for quantum start-ups will be pursued in particular through this call. | Names its pillar, Quantum communication |
| EuroHPC JU quantum technology calls (Quantum Flagship) | Horizon Europe: Quantum Flagship, implemented by the EuroHPC JU | Since Council Regulation (EU) 2026/150 entered into force on 20 January 2026, the JU implements the Union's quantum technology agenda, including the Quantum Flagship funded through Horizon Europe, and its 2026 calls cover quantum computing platforms, QKD, testing infrastructure, pilot lines, sensing, machine learning and standards. | Names its pillar, Quantum communication |
| QuantERA joint transnational calls | QuantERA: network of national research funders with European Commission co-funding | QuantERA is a network of research funders for quantum technologies, and Call 2025 covered quantum phenomena and resources and applied quantum science across communication, computing, simulation, sensing and metrology. | Names its pillar, Quantum communication |
| CEF Digital: EuroQCI quantum communication interconnections | Connecting Europe Facility (CEF Digital) | CEF Digital funds the cross-border interconnections of the European Quantum Communication Infrastructure (EuroQCI) for the secure exchange of cryptographic keys across the EU. | Names its pillar, Quantum communication |
6 more instruments are open to any field of research and are not listed here.
EU and national projects
11 confirmed items.
| Measure | Total | Projects with an amount | Projects without one |
|---|---|---|---|
| award value (Gateway to Research) | GBP 3,394,039 | 2 | 0 |
| total eligible expenditure | EUR 1,747,493.59 | 1 | 0 |
| award value (Gateway to Research) | 0 | 0 | 8 |
Each project counts once. A total adds the amount each source states for its projects within one measure and one currency only: EU contributions, national awards and other measures are never added together. Total cost includes the award and is shown separately. A country filter keeps whole projects with a participant in the country, so its total is not the country's share. Programme envelopes, partner shares, co-funding and payments are separate layers and are never added to awards; payments are not published by the sources used. Outputs are linked only through an explicit project or grant identifier or reviewed documentary evidence, never by name alone; only a reviewed document can show a demonstrated contribution. CORDIS and Funding & Tenders amounts are one measure, the EU contribution (maximum grant agreed in the grant agreement, not payments). Country codes EL and UK are read as GR (Greece) and GB (United Kingdom). National and regional rows whose title names no quantum technology are left out unless asked for. EU and national totals are shown apart and never added.
- Self-tuning electronic controller of the satellite quantum entanglement generator
- 3QN: Towards A New UK Industry for Novel Quantum Receivers in Nascent Satellite QKD Global Markets
- Feasibility study for next-generation light source for Satellite Quantum Key Distribution
- High performance Satellite Quantum Communication
- Satellite Quantum Communication
Patents and publications
Patent counts come from EPO Open Patent Services in technology intelligence, by CPC group, and per EPO quantum concept in the technology intelligence reports; publications by OpenAlex topic. The patent series of this node and its documents follow below.
Documented in these sources: 1 indicator page of this technology.
Patent landscape of Quantum communication in technology intelligence · All technology intelligence reports
Patents
No patent series for this node. No CPC group names this technology, so no patent series is drawn for it.
Patent landscape of the pillar Quantum communication in technology intelligence
Standards
Standards, specifications, committees and roadmaps of the standards tracker in the scope of this technology, each with its body and status.
Documented in these sources: 20 tracked items.
| Identifier | Title | Kind | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| ETSI ISG QKD | Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) | Committee or group | Active |
| ETSI GS QKD 002 | Quantum Key Distribution (QKD); Use Cases | Specification | Published |
| ETSI GS QKD 004 | Quantum Key Distribution (QKD); Application Interface | Specification | Published |
| ETSI GS QKD 005 | Quantum Key Distribution (QKD); Security Proofs | Specification | Published |
| ETSI GS QKD 011 | Quantum Key Distribution (QKD); Component characterization: characterizing optical components for QKD systems | Specification | Published |
| ETSI GS QKD 012 | Quantum Key Distribution (QKD); Device and Communication Channel Parameters for QKD Deployment | Specification | Published |
| ETSI GS QKD 014 | Quantum Key Distribution (QKD); Protocol and data format of REST-based key delivery API | Specification | Published |
| ETSI GS QKD 015 | Quantum Key Distribution (QKD); Control Interface for Software Defined Networks | Specification | Published |
| ETSI GS QKD 016 | Quantum Key Distribution (QKD); Common Criteria Protection Profile - Pair of Prepare and Measure Quantum Key Distribution Modules | Specification | Published |
| ETSI GS QKD 018 | Quantum Key Distribution (QKD); Orchestration Interface for Software Defined Networks | Specification | Published |
| ETSI GS QKD 020 | Quantum Key Distribution (QKD); Protocol and data format of REST-based Interoperable Key Management System API | Specification | Published |
| ITU-T Y.3800 | Overview on networks supporting quantum key distribution | Recommendation | Published |
| ITU-T Y.3801 | Functional requirements for quantum key distribution networks | Recommendation | Published |
| ITU-T Y.3802 | Quantum key distribution networks - Functional architecture | Recommendation | Published |
| ITU-T Y.3803 | Quantum key distribution networks - Key management | Recommendation | Published |
| ITU-T Y.3804 | Quantum key distribution networks - Control and management | Recommendation | Published |
| ITU-T Y.3810 | Quantum key distribution network interworking - Framework | Recommendation | Published |
| prCEN/CLC/TR XXX (WI JT022014) | Gaps in IT security evaluation of QKD systems and networks | Work item or project | In development |
| ISO/IEC 23837-1:2023 | Information security — Security requirements, test and evaluation methods for quantum key distribution — Part 1: Requirements | Standard | Published |
| ISO/IEC 23837-2:2023 | Information security — Security requirements, test and evaluation methods for quantum key distribution — Part 2: Evaluation and testing methods | Standard | Published |
9 tracked items are about quantum technologies in general.
Policy measures
Actions of the Quantum Europe Strategy (COM(2025) 363) that name this technology or its pillar, or that link one of its facilities, with their status in the strategy tracker.
Documented in these sources: 4 actions.
| Action | Status | Target | Why it is shown | Where in the strategy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deploy the first EU-interconnected quantum communication network | In progress (evidence) | By 2030 | Names its pillar, Quantum communication | Section 2.2.2, The EuroQCI Initiative (pp. 8-9) and action list (p. 10); Appendix, Area 2 (p. 23) |
| Launch the Eagle-1 QKD satellite | Announced | 2026 | Names this technology | Section 2.2.2, The EuroQCI Initiative (p. 8) |
| Publish a Quantum Communication Roadmap | Announced | 2026 | Names its pillar, Quantum communication | Section 2.2.2, action list (p. 10); Appendix, Area 2 (p. 23) |
| Launch a pilot facility for the European Quantum Internet | In progress (evidence) | 2026 | Names its pillar, Quantum communication | Section 2.2.2, The Quantum Internet Initiative (p. 9) and action list (p. 10); Appendix, Area 2 (p. 23) |
Evidence gaps
Stages of the value chain for which these sources link no documented European actor. Evidence gap in these sources, not a finding of dependency. A company may well supply the stage without a product page the directory has read; a missing record is never proof of a strategic dependency.
No evidence found in these sources. No value chain is recorded for this technology, so no gap can be named.
JRC and EU analysis
Reports and pages of the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC). Identifiers are those of the JRC Publications Repository; the portal does not reproduce their data.
- JRC Quantum Communication and Sensing Laboratory (EuroQCI testing and evaluation laboratory)
The JRC has been selected to host the EuroQCI testing and evaluation laboratory, building on the Digital Europe project NOSTRADAMUS (launched January 2024). The JRC describes its role as generating reproducible technical evidence with a view to future certification, not as guaranteeing that a product is free of vulnerabilities.
- Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) experimental assessment (ThinkQuantum QuKy)
Functional testing of a commercial QKD system at the JRC. An experimental assessment, not a certification.
- EU role in the global quantum race
Policy brief on the global quantum technology landscape: public and private funding, innovation potential and market perspective.
- Future Directions for Quantum Technology in Europe
Background analysis for the Quantum Europe Strategy: companies, patents, publications, supply chains, public funding and venture capital, by sector (communication including QKD, computing including simulation, sensing, and post-quantum cryptography).
- Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) Experimental Assessment (QTI Quell-X)
Performance assessment of a commercial QKD system installed at the JRC in February 2024. An experimental assessment, not a certification.
- Patent analysis of selected quantum technologies
Patent applications in the EPO Global Patent Index for quantum computing, quantum key distribution, quantum entanglement and cold atom interferometry, with a discussion of method (EUR 29614 EN).
Further reading
- Understanding Quantum Technologies 2025 (Olivier Ezratty, 8th edition, version 8.1 of 30 October 2025, arXiv:2111.15352 (v6), doi:10.48550/arXiv.2111.15352, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)See Part 4: Communications and sensing
- Understanding Quantum Technologies 2026 (Olivier Ezratty, 9th edition, version 9.0 of 17 October 2026 (latest edition))See Part 4: Communications and sensing
Olivier Ezratty, Understanding Quantum Technologies (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0). Links only; no text of the book is reproduced on this portal.
All technologies · How items are classified · Published classification method · Draft SRIA 2026 chapter: Communication