QRYPTON - Quantum secuRe crYptograPhy to secure IoT devices in deep submicrOn Nodes

Every second, Internet of Things devices—smart meters, medical sensors, factory monitors—are being hacked, with over a billion attacks globally in 2021 alone, costing Europe €20 billion per year. Today’s security relies on injecting secret keys into chips during manufacturing, a process that is risky, expensive, and controlled by third parties. QRYPTON eliminates that step entirely. The team has designed a tiny silicon circuit, called QDID, that exploits the natural randomness of quantum tunnelling—electrons leaking through the oxide layer of a transistor—to generate unique, unforgeable cryptographic keys on demand, inside the device itself. A companion software, QuarkLink, manages those keys securely. This project will shrink QDID down to the latest deep submicron manufacturing processes (below 12 nanometres) and turn the software into a production-ready product. If successful, any IoT device—from a smart thermostat to a hospital infusion pump—could generate its own unbreakable identity without relying on a vulnerable supply chain. The result would be a fundamental shift in how billions of connected devices are secured, at lower cost and higher trust.