49,094 research outputs found
Coded Cooperative Data Exchange for a Secret Key
We consider a coded cooperative data exchange problem with the goal of
generating a secret key. Specifically, we investigate the number of public
transmissions required for a set of clients to agree on a secret key with
probability one, subject to the constraint that it remains private from an
eavesdropper.
Although the problems are closely related, we prove that secret key
generation with fewest number of linear transmissions is NP-hard, while it is
known that the analogous problem in traditional cooperative data exchange can
be solved in polynomial time. In doing this, we completely characterize the
best possible performance of linear coding schemes, and also prove that linear
codes can be strictly suboptimal. Finally, we extend the single-key results to
characterize the minimum number of public transmissions required to generate a
desired integer number of statistically independent secret keys.Comment: Full version of a paper that appeared at ISIT 2014. 19 pages, 2
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Inter-satellite Quantum Key Distribution at Terahertz Frequencies
Terahertz (THz) communication is a topic of much research in the context of
high-capacity next-generation wireless networks. Quantum communication is also
a topic of intensive research, most recently in the context of space-based
deployments. In this work we explore the use of THz frequencies as a means to
achieve quantum communication within a constellation of micro-satellites in
Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO). Quantum communication between the micro-satellite
constellation and high-altitude terrestrial stations is also investigated. Our
work demonstrates that THz quantum entanglement distribution and THz quantum
key distribution are viable deployment options in the micro-satellite context.
We discuss how such deployment opens up the possibility for simpler integration
of global quantum and wireless networks. The possibility of using THz
frequencies for quantum-radar applications in the context of LEO deployments is
briefly discussed.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure
Key Generation in Wireless Sensor Networks Based on Frequency-selective Channels - Design, Implementation, and Analysis
Key management in wireless sensor networks faces several new challenges. The
scale, resource limitations, and new threats such as node capture necessitate
the use of an on-line key generation by the nodes themselves. However, the cost
of such schemes is high since their secrecy is based on computational
complexity. Recently, several research contributions justified that the
wireless channel itself can be used to generate information-theoretic secure
keys. By exchanging sampling messages during movement, a bit string can be
derived that is only known to the involved entities. Yet, movement is not the
only possibility to generate randomness. The channel response is also strongly
dependent on the frequency of the transmitted signal. In our work, we introduce
a protocol for key generation based on the frequency-selectivity of channel
fading. The practical advantage of this approach is that we do not require node
movement. Thus, the frequent case of a sensor network with static motes is
supported. Furthermore, the error correction property of the protocol mitigates
the effects of measurement errors and other temporal effects, giving rise to an
agreement rate of over 97%. We show the applicability of our protocol by
implementing it on MICAz motes, and evaluate its robustness and secrecy through
experiments and analysis.Comment: Submitted to IEEE Transactions on Dependable and Secure Computin
Quantum key distribution and 1 Gbit/s data encryption over a single fibre
We perform quantum key distribution (QKD) in the presence of 4 classical
channels in a C-band dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM)
configuration using a commercial QKD system. The classical channels are used
for key distillation and 1 Gbps encrypted communication, rendering the entire
system independent from any other communication channel than a single dedicated
fibre. We successfully distil secret keys over fibre spans of up to 50 km. The
separation between quantum channel and nearest classical channel is only 200
GHz, while the classical channels are all separated by 100 GHz. In addition to
that we discuss possible improvements and alternative configurations, for
instance whether it is advantageous to choose the quantum channel at 1310 nm or
to opt for a pure C-band configuration.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figure
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