Slovenia’s national quantum communication infrastructure project, SiQUID (Slovenian Quantum Communication Infrastructure Demonstration), launched on January 1, 2023, with a duration running through June 30, 2025. Funded under the EU’s Digital Europe Programme with €2.0 million from the Recovery and Resilience Facility, the project is led by the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics at the University of Ljubljana, according to the European Commission project page.
SiQUID brings together the Jožef Stefan Institute, Beyond Semiconductor Ltd., the Government Information Security Office, and the Government Office for the Protection of Classified Information. Its objectives include establishing quantum key distribution (QKD) links between several government nodes in Slovenia and building a test quantum network between research institutions in Ljubljana for advanced quantum communication protocols.
Project partners are also testing measurement-device-independent QKD and the long-distance distribution of entanglement to prepare for a future full-scale quantum communication network. SiQUID maintains contact with QCI initiatives in neighboring countries to facilitate cross-border interconnections and eventual integration with the EuroQCI space segment.