Background and Motivation
Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite networks introduce unique challenges for maintaining secure communications during satellite handovers. Unlike traditional terrestrial networks, LEO connections frequently switch between satellites and ground stations (Points of Presence), potentially disrupting encrypted sessions. Current secure protocols like TLS and QUIC were designed with relatively stable endpoints in mind, making connection migration during handovers problematic.
The core challenge lies in enabling seamless, secure connection migration without compromising end-to-end encryption or requiring complete session re-establishment. This requires novel approaches to key exchange, session state management, and integration with routing protocols specific to satellite environments.
Expected Outcomes
This thesis will develop mechanisms to support secure connection migration in satellite networks, enabling users to seamlessly transition between Points of Presence without disrupting encrypted sessions.
Key research questions include:
- How to design efficient key exchange protocols that support connection migration across multiple PoPs?
- How to integrate secure session migration with end-to-end routing decisions in LEO networks?
- What are the performance trade-offs between security guarantees and handover latency?
For detailed information about this thesis topic, please contact Dr. Nitinder Mohan at n.mohan@tudelft.nl.
