# Quantum Networks & Post-Quantum Cryptography: State of the Field (October 2026)

Research dossier · v1 · updated 2026-10-29 · 6,420 words · 108 sources · 27 claims · verification: verified

An expert briefing, current to 29 October 2026, on quantum key distribution (QKD), entanglement-based quantum networks and repeaters, and the migration to the NIST post-quantum cryptography (PQC) standards ML-KEM, ML-DSA and SLH-DSA. The central takeaway is that PQC has become the standardized, mandated and already-deployed route to quantum-safe security: NIST's final transition report (IR 8547, dated 27 October 2026) is reported to set 2030 and 2035 milestones for quantum-vulnerable public-key algorithms, US federal policy reportedly directs the most sensitive systems toward PQC key establishment by the end of 2030, and hybrid ML-KEM key exchange is now an IETF standard for TLS 1.3. QKD keeps setting records (1,002 km of spooled fibre, a reported 254 km of commercial fibre, and a trusted-relay satellite key exchange), but long links still depend on trusted nodes, and a 2026 trapped-ion experiment held memory-to-memory entanglement over 10 km of fibre for the average time needed to create it.

## Contents

- Executive summary
- Background and core concepts
- Timeline of key milestones
- State of the art
  - Standards and the federal transition
  - Protocol integration and measured deployment
  - Cryptanalysis and implementation security of PQC
  - QKD security in practice
  - Fibre QKD: distance, rate and coexistence
  - Free-space and satellite links
  - Entanglement networks, repeaters and DI-QKD
  - Quantum threat: resource estimates
  - Quantitative benchmarks
- Open problems and active debates
- Major programs and players
- Outlook: what to watch (November 2026 to April 2028)
- Key papers
- Glossary

## Sample findings

- NIST published ML-KEM (FIPS 203), ML-DSA (FIPS 204) and SLH-DSA (FIPS 205) on 13 August 2024.
- NIST's final transition report (IR 8547, dated 27 October 2026 on NIST's publication page) is reported to set 2030 deprecation and 2035 disallowance milestones for RSA, ECDSA, EdDSA and finite-field and elliptic-curve Diffie-Hellman; these milestones were not confirmed against the report text, and whether the 2030 step extends beyond 112-bit parameter sets is unconfirmed.

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