Introduction
Table of contents
Objectives of the Chaire
The research and teaching Chaire, Impact of Quantum to Cybersecurity (IQC), has two main goals:
- Strengthen the teaching of quantum technologies and their impact on cybersecurity at EPITA, particularly through several specialized masters, also called majors: BuildSec, Quantum Technologies, Infrastructure, Cloud & Telecommunication, and Systems, Networks and Security.
- Develop impactful research in post-quantum cryptography and foster research into quantum software development, in collaboration with industrial partners and, more broadly, with stakeholders from the socio-economic sector.
Partners
To be announced.
Environment
The Chaire is hosted at EPITA, in the EPITA Research Laboratory (LRE).
Since its creation in 1984, EPITA has been the leading school for Computer Science engineers in Paris. It prepares students with a passion for engineering to build the world of the future, in particular, but not limited to, cybersecurity and quantum technologies.
Created in September 2022, the LRE is the result of the merger of the EPITA Research and Development Laboratory (LRDE) and the EPITA Systems Laboratory (LSE). The LRE is organized into five research teams spread across the Paris, Lyon, Rennes, Strasbourg and Toulouse sites, focusing its activities on five main areas.
The Chaire is naturally affiliated with the Security and Systems research team.
Team
| Role | Name | Affiliation |
|---|---|---|
| Chair Holder | Ludovic Perret | Professor, LRE, EPITA |
| Head of Teaching | Axel Ferrazzini | Head of the quantum major, EPITA |
| Quantum Software Engineering Lead | Olivier Ezratty | Quantum engineer (role to confirm), Freelance & EPITA |
Programme
General context
The IQC Chaire has been established to stimulate research activities at the intersection of cryptography and quantum technologies within LRE. The motivation is to establish a continuum and strengthen synergies between LRE research activities and EPITA's teaching programmes, particularly through the specialized masters associated with the Chaire, and, more broadly, to contribute to the development of an ecosystem around these themes.
The central research theme of the Chaire is quantum-resistant cryptography, encompassing both highly industry-oriented issues and more theoretical aspects related to quantum algorithms and the assessment of the security of post-quantum cryptography. The need for accurate quantum resource estimates motivated the introduction of an additional research strand focusing on quantum software engineering, which also addresses the need to train EPITA engineers to develop quantum software solutions for industry.
Quantum-resistant cryptography
Quantum technologies are challenging the security of the cryptography used daily by billions of users. It is well known that Shor's quantum algorithm will make obsolete the public-key cryptography, such as RSA or Diffie-Hellman, that forms the security backbone of our digital infrastructure.
A new generation of cryptography, collectively known as quantum-resistant cryptography, offers two complementary approaches to protect against quantum threats. The first, quantum cryptography — which includes Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) — exploits the very same properties of quantum physics that make the quantum computer both powerful and dangerous, in order to guarantee unconditional security.
The second approach, post-quantum cryptography (PQC), is based on new mathematical problems that are believed to be resistant to quantum computers. Post-quantum cryptography, the primary focus of this Chaire, has evolved from a primarily academic field into a major strategic sector with the emergence of a dedicated industry. In particular, the establishment of the first post-quantum standards by NIST in 2025 launched the large-scale deployment of this new cryptography.
The Chaire aims to address the main scientific and technical challenges associated with this deployment. Three main research areas have been defined:
| Axis | Focus |
|---|---|
| Post-quantum cryptanalysis | Algebraic cryptanalysis, quantum algorithms and statistical techniques for the analysis of post-quantum schemes. |
| Advanced and fully hybrid post-quantum cryptography | New post-quantum algorithms with advanced properties, and fully hybrid classical / post-quantum protocols for quantum communications. |
| Post-quantum cryptography for industry | Practical deployment: cryptographic asset inventory tools, and integration/performance testing in TLS, X.509, DNSSEC, etc. |
Quantum software engineering
The Chaire aims to contribute to the development of the field of quantum software engineering. This new discipline covers the entire process of creating quantum software and encompasses algorithms, analysis of the conditions required to achieve a quantum advantage, resource estimates, quantum code emulation, benchmarking, debugging, the classical component of quantum algorithms (including classical machine learning, GPUs, and HPC), compilation, optimization, the integration of error-correction building blocks, certification and verification, as well as distributed quantum computing. This is a cross-disciplinary and integrative field combining quantum algorithms, new software building blocks for quantum computing, and existing best practices in quantum computing.
In particular, resource estimates will focus on their relationship to computation time, the necessary hardware resources, and the energy footprint of quantum computing. A major research focus will be on optimization methods associated with these various constraints, enabling the integration of knowledge about both the software and hardware components of the solutions.
This branch of the IQC Chaire aims to complement the security analysis of post-quantum cryptography with an analysis of the resources required, as well as to enable research engineers to advance the discipline of quantum software engineering and to enable EPITA engineers to become cross-functional project managers for developing quantum software solutions in industry.
Education
The IQC Chaire will focus on the following challenges:
- Strengthen ties between research, education, and industry.
- Oversee the curriculum to ensure it is continually adapted to the needs of stakeholders in cybersecurity, quantum computing, quantum communications, and quantum sensors.
- Contribute to the development of new talent to accelerate the adoption of post-quantum cryptography, quantum computing, and, more broadly, quantum technologies.
- Strengthen the role of software development in quantum computing.