Quantum Skyshield: Quantum Key Distribution and Post-Quantum Authentication for Low-Altitude Wireless Networks in Adverse Skies

2025-07-20

AI Summary

Low-altitude wireless networks (LAWNs) face severe security challenges under adverse weather conditions and quantum threats, including eavesdropping, spoofing, atmospheric turbulence, and beam misalignment. Method: This paper proposes a lightweight quantum-safe architecture integrating quantum key distribution (QKD) with post-quantum authentication. It combines the BB84 protocol, Lamport one-time signatures, and HMAC, augmented by a Grover-inspired heuristic threat detection mechanism for real-time trust assessment. Contribution/Results: The mechanism achieves 89% anomaly detection accuracy per iteration. Simulation results show stable generation of 128-bit symmetric keys when the free-space optical (FSO) channel’s quantum bit error rate (QBER) remains ≤11%. By jointly enhancing physical-layer security (via QKD) and computational security (via post-quantum primitives), the architecture significantly improves LAWNs’ resilience against quantum attacks and communication reliability under complex meteorological conditions.

Technology Category

• Machine Learning: Quantum Machine Learning
• Natural Language Processing: Safety and Robustness
• Application Domains: Security

Application Category

• Security and Privacy: Large-scale security measurements
• Systems and Infrastructure for Web, Mobile and WoT: Sustainability and carbon-aware systems for Web, mobile, and WoT
• Search and Retrieval-Augmented AI: Web evaluation methodologies and metrics

Abstract

Recently, low-altitude wireless networks (LAWNs) have emerged as a critical backbone for supporting the low-altitude economy, particularly with the densification of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and high-altitude platforms (HAPs). To meet growing data demands, some LAWN deployments incorporate free-space optical (FSO) links, which offer exceptional bandwidth and beam directivity. However, without strong security measures in place, both conventional radio frequency channels and FSO beams remain vulnerable to interception and spoofing and FSO in particular can suffer from turbulence, misalignment, and weather-related attenuation. To address these challenges in the quantum era, a quantum-secure architecture called Quantum Skyshield is proposed to enable reliable communication between the base transceiver station (BTS) and LAWN. The proposed design integrates BB84 quantum key distribution (QKD) with post-quantum authentication mechanisms. Simulation results confirm the reliable generation of a 128-bit symmetric key when the quantum bit error rate (QBER) remains below the threshold of 11%. Authentication is enforced using Lamport one-time signatures and hash-based message authentication codes (HMAC) to ensure message integrity. A Grover-inspired threat detection mechanism identifies anomalies with up to 89% probability in a single iteration, enabling real-time trust evaluation. Lastly, future research challenges have also been identified and discussed to guide further development in this area.

Problem

• Securing low-altitude wireless networks against interception and spoofing
• Mitigating turbulence and weather-related issues in FSO communication
• Integrating quantum and post-quantum security for reliable LAWN communication

Innovation

• Integrates BB84 QKD for secure key distribution
• Uses Lamport signatures and HMAC for authentication
• Employs Grover-inspired anomaly detection for threats