scope:

The present document describes the main communication resources involved in a QKD system and the possible architectures that can be adopted when performing a QKD deployment over an optical network infrastructure.

The scope of the present document is restricted to QKD deployments over fibre optical networks. Architectural options are also restricted to point-to-point communication.

The different entities that can take part in a QKD deployment and the possible contexts of deployment capturing the roles played by the different entities are defined. One specific context (context1) is then addressed where one entity (QKD_O), operating QKD Modules, plans a QKD deployment over an optical network infrastructure, operated by another entity (NET_O).

The information regarding the QKD system parameters and the network parameters to be exchanged (in context1) are listed and prioritized. The corresponding tables, placed at the end of the present document, can be used as a standard template for the exchange of information between QKD_O entities and NET_O entities involved in the QKD deployment.