Cryptographic Security in the Quantum Era: QKD, Post-Quantum Cryptography, and Key Management

The rapid progress of quantum technologies is reshaping the foundations of secure communication. On one hand, quantum cryptography leverages core principles of quantum mechanics - such as measurement disturbance and the no-cloning theorem - to enable security primitives like quantum key distribution (QKD). On the other hand, the anticipated availability of large-scale quantum computers threatens widely deployed public-key cryptosystems, driving urgent development and deployment of post-quantum cryptography (PQC).While QKD offers information-theoretic security for key exchange under well-defined assumptions, and PQC provides quantum-resistant alternatives for classical infrastructures, both approaches face practical challenges: implementation security, parameter selection, performance overhead, large key sizes, and - critically - the generation and management of high-entropy cryptographic key material. Bridging theoretical guarantees with deployable systems remains an open and fast-moving area.This Research Topic aims to advance cryptographic security in the quantum era by bringing together research on (i) quantum cryptographic protocols and quantum-secure communication, and (ii) post-quantum cryptographic algorithms, key generation, and optimization strategies that enable scalable, robust, real-world deployment. We welcome contributions that strengthen security against both classical and quantum adversaries and that clarify security–performance trade-offs in modern systems.Scope (including but not limited to)o Quantum cryptography and QKD protocols, architectures, and implementation securityo Security in quantum communication networks, including adversarial models and trust assumptionso Design, analysis, and implementation of post-quantum cryptographic algorithms (KEMs, signatures, hybrid schemes)o Key generation and key management: entropy, randomness extraction, bias detection, secure key storage and lifecycleo Parameter selection, key-size reduction, and computational optimization for PQC and quantum-secure systemso Formal methods, proof frameworks, security reductions, and robustness under evolving threat modelso Side-channel resistance and implementation-hardening for both QKD systems and PQC implementationso Deployment and migration: interoperability, benchmarking, integration into existing protocols and infrastructures Topic editors: Abdulbast A. Abushgra, Majid Alshammari, Urbasi Sinha Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/77713/cryptographic-security-in-the-quantum-era-qkd-post-quantum-cryptography-and-key-management