The QuantERA Call 2025 brought together 34 funding organisations from 29 countries. A total of 287 project proposals involving more than 1,400 research teams competed for funding. Ultimately, only 39 international consortia were selected for funding, with a combined budget of EUR 53 million.
“International projects of this kind are among the most prestigious forms of European scientific collaboration. We are therefore particularly pleased to have succeeded with two projects and to further develop our cooperation with leading European institutions in the field of quantum technologies,” says Associate Professor Matěj Komanec from the Department of Electromagnetic Field at CTU FEE, who leads the ICON project.
Quantum communications without compromise
The ICON project introduces a new approach to quantum communications. While current systems generally seek to adapt quantum technologies to existing telecommunications infrastructure, researchers from CTU FEE and their partners are reversing this principle by developing communication infrastructure designed specifically for the needs of quantum systems.
Hollow-core optical fibres will play a key role. In these fibres, light propagates through air rather than glass. This new generation of optical fibres makes it possible to operate at wavelengths better suited to quantum photon sources and to achieve significantly higher quantum transmission efficiency.
The project will also develop technologies enabling quantum keys to be shared simultaneously among multiple users. Current quantum key distribution systems typically connect only two communicating parties, whereas the new approach aims to enable secure communication among multiple participants within a single quantum network.
“We have been working on hollow-core optical fibres and their use in telecommunications for many years. In the ICON project, we aim to demonstrate that this technology can significantly increase the efficiency of future quantum communication networks,” adds Associate Professor Komanec.
In addition to experts from CTU FEE, researchers from TU Wien and the University of Southampton will collaborate on the ICON project. While the Austrian partner will contribute expertise in quantum sources and detectors, the British team is among the world’s pioneers in the development of hollow-core optical fibres. The Czech team will focus primarily on integrating the two technologies and developing efficient coupling between conventional and novel types of optical fibre.
More resilient quantum encryption for future networks
The second funded project, EXCEL-QKD, led by Professor Stanislav Zvánovec from the Department of Electromagnetic Field at CTU FEE, will focus on further advancing quantum key distribution (QKD). QKD is one of the most promising technologies for secure communications of the future, using the principles of quantum physics to protect transmitted data.
Researchers from CTU, together with partners from Luxembourg and the Canary Islands, will develop a new quantum communication network concept enabling encryption keys to be securely shared among multiple users simultaneously. By employing multiple spatially distributed quantum sources, the system will be more resilient to interference and potential attacks while offering greater reliability and higher transmission rates.
A key part of the project will also involve developing new algorithms and using advanced multi-pixel photon detectors capable of precisely distinguishing individual quantum signals arriving simultaneously from multiple sources. The project is expected to result in new protocols for more secure and efficient quantum communication networks.
“Quantum key distribution is one of the first technologies to bring the benefits of quantum physics into practical use. Our goal is to develop communication systems that are secure, resilient and ready for a future in which quantum technologies become a standard part of digital infrastructure,” says Professor Stanislav Zvánovec from the Department of Electromagnetic Field at CTU FEE.
The CTU team will build on its extensive experience in quantum wireless communications research. In recent years, it has carried out a number of experiments involving the transmission of quantum signals through free space and, in cooperation with the German Aerospace Center (DLR), conducted unique experiments over a 6.7-kilometre free-space optical link.
International collaboration and new opportunities for students
Both projects will begin in September 2026 and run for three years. In addition to the research itself, they will create new opportunities for doctoral students and early-career researchers, who will be able to undertake extended research stays at partner universities abroad.
Approximately ten researchers, postdoctoral researchers and doctoral students from the Department of Electromagnetic Field at CTU FEE will be involved in the projects. Training a new generation of experts in quantum communications will also be an important part of both projects.
photo: Petr Neugebauer
