ICFO receives a Delegation of Ministers from Luxembourg to explore cutting-edge innovations in Photonics, Quantum Communications and Cybersecurity
Today, ICFO received the visit of the Minister for Digitalisation, Minister for Research and Higher Education and Minister of the Economy, SME, Energy and Tourism together with a delegation comprised by Industry entities of Luxembourg and accompanied by representatives of ACCIÓ, hosts of the visit.
The Luxembourg Minister for Digitalisation, Minister for Research and Higher Education, Stéphanie Obertin, and the Minister of the Economy, SME, Energy and Tourism, Lex Delles, accompanied by a delegation from Luxembourg and representatives of ACCIÓ, visited ICFO to deepen the Ministry's understanding of ICFO’s ongoing research in the field of photonics sciences and quantum technologies, tour its state-of-the-art laboratories, and meet and visit LuxQuanta, a spin-off of ICFO, that develops and integrates Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) systems into communication infrastructures.
The visit began with a formal meeting featuring presentations from the center's director, Oriol Romero-Isart, Vice Director of Innovation, Sponsored Research and Public Engagement, Silvia Carrasco, and LuxQuanta CEO, Vanesa Díaz. These talks provided an overview of the institute’s mission, scientific excellence and capabilities, strategic as well as technology transfer strengths in the fields of photonics and quantum research. The session served as a platform for open dialogue, inviting the Ministers and accompanying officials to share insights on national priorities and discuss how the institute’s technological advancements could help meet pressing societal and economic needs.
Following the presentations, the delegation toured several advanced technological labs at ICFO, including the NanoFabrication Lab, a crucial facility for the start of the new Pilot Line in Photonic Integrated Circuits, a quantum communications lab centered on the development of quantum memories and repeaters, and finally, LuxQuanta installations, where the delegation received live demonstrations of commercial products that center their technology in quantum key distribution (QKD) systems and encryption protocols. These are being designed to withstand the threat of possible hackers and can be easily integrated into classical telecommunication systems.
This visit underscores the country's strong commitment to identifying possible innovative solutions that could help overcome issues with data privacy, cyberattacks, and the future risks posed by quantum computing. As mentioned during the visit, the Luxembourg government is exploring new areas, in particular, quantum communication, as a essential technology for future secure telecommunication infrastructures. Quantum technologies, including quantum key distribution systems, offer significantly new methods of ensuring information security, enabling communication that is resilient to eavesdropping and future-proofed against the computational power of quantum threats.