Quantum communications network gives China an edge in high-tech

THE QUANTUM COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK connecting Beijing and Shanghai, about 2,000 kilometers apart, recently passed the evaluation board's technology test. Beijing News comments:

The quantum communications network, the first of its kind in the world, is ready to be launched in China. Quantum communications technology allows two parties to share a message, which is encrypted using a secret "key" made of quantum particles such as polarized photons and the data are transferred at the speed of light.

Quantum communication is generally regarded as "unhackable", because if a third party tries to intercept the photons by copying the secret "key" as it transfers data through the network, the hacker will be immediately exposed because, according to the law of quantum mechanics, any interference will affect the behavior of the "key" that can be detected by dataflow monitors.