5,549 research outputs found
Distributing Secret Keys with Quantum Continuous Variables: Principle, Security and Implementations
The ability to distribute secret keys between two parties with
information-theoretic security, that is, regardless of the capacities of a
malevolent eavesdropper, is one of the most celebrated results in the field of
quantum information processing and communication. Indeed, quantum key
distribution illustrates the power of encoding information on the quantum
properties of light and has far reaching implications in high-security
applications. Today, quantum key distribution systems operate in real-world
conditions and are commercially available. As with most quantum information
protocols, quantum key distribution was first designed for qubits, the
individual quanta of information. However, the use of quantum continuous
variables for this task presents important advantages with respect to qubit
based protocols, in particular from a practical point of view, since it allows
for simple implementations that require only standard telecommunication
technology. In this review article, we describe the principle of
continuous-variable quantum key distribution, focusing in particular on
protocols based on coherent states. We discuss the security of these protocols
and report on the state-of-the-art in experimental implementations, including
the issue of side-channel attacks. We conclude with promising perspectives in
this research field.Comment: 21 pages, 2 figures, 1 tabl
Using quantum key distribution for cryptographic purposes: a survey
The appealing feature of quantum key distribution (QKD), from a cryptographic
viewpoint, is the ability to prove the information-theoretic security (ITS) of
the established keys. As a key establishment primitive, QKD however does not
provide a standalone security service in its own: the secret keys established
by QKD are in general then used by a subsequent cryptographic applications for
which the requirements, the context of use and the security properties can
vary. It is therefore important, in the perspective of integrating QKD in
security infrastructures, to analyze how QKD can be combined with other
cryptographic primitives. The purpose of this survey article, which is mostly
centered on European research results, is to contribute to such an analysis. We
first review and compare the properties of the existing key establishment
techniques, QKD being one of them. We then study more specifically two generic
scenarios related to the practical use of QKD in cryptographic infrastructures:
1) using QKD as a key renewal technique for a symmetric cipher over a
point-to-point link; 2) using QKD in a network containing many users with the
objective of offering any-to-any key establishment service. We discuss the
constraints as well as the potential interest of using QKD in these contexts.
We finally give an overview of challenges relative to the development of QKD
technology that also constitute potential avenues for cryptographic research.Comment: Revised version of the SECOQC White Paper. Published in the special
issue on QKD of TCS, Theoretical Computer Science (2014), pp. 62-8
Field test of quantum key distribution in the Tokyo QKD Network
A novel secure communication network with quantum key distribution in a
metropolitan area is reported. Different QKD schemes are integrated to
demonstrate secure TV conferencing over a distance of 45km, stable long-term
operation, and application to secure mobile phones.Comment: 21 pages, 19 figure
Modeling Quantum Optical Components, Pulses and Fiber Channels Using OMNeT++
Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) is an innovative technology which exploits the
laws of quantum mechanics to generate and distribute unconditionally secure
cryptographic keys. While QKD offers the promise of unconditionally secure key
distribution, real world systems are built from non-ideal components which
necessitates the need to model and understand the impact these non-idealities
have on system performance and security. OMNeT++ has been used as a basis to
develop a simulation framework to support this endeavor. This framework,
referred to as "qkdX" extends OMNeT++'s module and message abstractions to
efficiently model optical components, optical pulses, operating protocols and
processes. This paper presents the design of this framework including how
OMNeT++'s abstractions have been utilized to model quantum optical components,
optical pulses, fiber and free space channels. Furthermore, from our toolbox of
created components, we present various notional and real QKD systems, which
have been studied and analyzed.Comment: Published in: A. F\"orster, C. Minkenberg, G. R. Herrera, M. Kirsche
(Eds.), Proc. of the 2nd OMNeT++ Community Summit, IBM Research - Zurich,
Switzerland, September 3-4, 201
The Security of Practical Quantum Key Distribution
Quantum key distribution (QKD) is the first quantum information task to reach
the level of mature technology, already fit for commercialization. It aims at
the creation of a secret key between authorized partners connected by a quantum
channel and a classical authenticated channel. The security of the key can in
principle be guaranteed without putting any restriction on the eavesdropper's
power.
The first two sections provide a concise up-to-date review of QKD, biased
toward the practical side. The rest of the paper presents the essential
theoretical tools that have been developed to assess the security of the main
experimental platforms (discrete variables, continuous variables and
distributed-phase-reference protocols).Comment: Identical to the published version, up to cosmetic editorial change
Quantum cryptography: key distribution and beyond
Uniquely among the sciences, quantum cryptography has driven both
foundational research as well as practical real-life applications. We review
the progress of quantum cryptography in the last decade, covering quantum key
distribution and other applications.Comment: It's a review on quantum cryptography and it is not restricted to QK
Improvement of continuous-variable quantum key distribution systems by using optical preamplifiers
Continuous-variable quantum key distribution protocols, based on Gaussian
modulation of the quadratures of coherent states, have been implemented in
recent experiments. A present limitation of such systems is the finite
efficiency of the detectors, which can in principle be compensated for by the
use of classical optical preamplifiers. Here we study this possibility in
detail, by deriving the modified secret key generation rates when an optical
parametric amplifier is placed at the output of the quantum channel. After
presenting a general set of security proofs, we show that the use of
preamplifiers does compensate for all the imperfections of the detectors when
the amplifier is optimal in terms of gain and noise. Imperfect amplifiers can
also enhance the system performance, under conditions which are generally
satisfied in practice.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures, submitted to J. Phys. B (special issue on Few
Atoms Optics
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