Hewlett-packard Development Company, L.P.

Other

Timothy Paul Spiller

William John Munro

Raymond G Beausoleil

Sean D Barrett

Keith Alexander Harrison

Kae Nemoto

Richard Stanley Williams

Philip John Kuekes

Christopher Tofts

Adrian P Kent

Pieter Kok

Martin Sadler

Joanna Duligall

Radu Ionicioiu

David A Fattal

Marco Fiorentino

Michael R Tan

Willem K Van Dam

In carrying out a task that consumes data from a one-time pad, task inputs comprising at least first data and second data from the pad, are combined together to form an output from which the data used from the pad cannot be recovered without knowledge of at least one of the first and second data. The task concerned can be, for example, the encrypting of a message or the creating of an attribute verifier.

Method and device using one-time pad data

A device is arranged to carry out security-related tasks using one-time pad data. The device has a memory for holding multiple one-time pads, each pad having a different security rating and being intended for use by the device in executing a task to that security rating. Provisioning of the pads with one-time pad data involves carrying out a process for obtaining new secret random data. This process has a security rating with the value of this rating varying according to the nature and parameters of the process concerned. The security rating of the process used to obtain the new secret random data is matched to that of the pad to be provisioned with one-time data, or the other way around, such that the security rating of the process is as least as good as that of the pad to be provisioned.

Device with multiple one-time pads and method of managing such a device

An iterative method is provided for progressively building an end-to-end entanglement between qubits in first and second end nodes () of a chain of nodes whose intermediate nodes () are quantum repeaters. At each iteration, a current operative repeater () of the chain merges an entanglement existing between qubits in the first end node () and the operative repeater, with a local entanglement formed between qubits in the operative repeater and its neighbor node towards the second end node (). For the first iteration, the operative repeater is the neighbor of the first end node (); thereafter, for each new iteration the operative repeater shifts one node further along the chain toward the second end node (). A quantum repeater adapted for implementing this method is also provided.

Quantum repeater and system and method for creating extended entanglements

A handheld device includes: a transmitter or receiver of a signal beam for quantum key distribution; and a source of alignment beams that diverge from each other in a pattern that matches sensors on a station containing a receiver or transmitter for the quantum key distribution. The alignment beams from the handheld device are of sufficient intensity to produce on the station visible spots that facilitate manual alignment of the handheld device. The station can measure a position and a direction of respective alignment beams and dynamically steer the signal beam according to the measurements.

Photonic quantum system alignment using multiple beams

A photonic interconnect method avoids high capacitance electric interconnects by using optical signals to communicate data between devices. The method can provide massively parallel information output by mapping logical addresses to frequency bands, so that modulation of a selected frequency band can encode information for a specific location corresponding to the logical address. Wavelength-specific directional couplers, modulators, and detectors, which can be fabricated at defects in a photonic bandgap crystal, can be employed for the photonic interconnect method. The interconnect method can be used for both classical and quantum information processing.

Photonic interconnect method

Secret random data is distributed to a plurality of devices to provision them with new one-time pad data for use in interacting with apparatus holding the same one-time pad data. This distribution is effected by provisioning a first device with a block of secret random data that is, or will become, available to the apparatus. Part of the secret random data is then distributed from the first device to one or more other devices in a hierarchical distribution pattern headed by the first device. Each device, other than those at the bottom of the distribution hierarchy, retains part of the secret random data it receives and passes on the remainder. Each device uses that part of the secret random data it has retained to provide the device with new one-time pad data. A method is also provided for tracking service usage based on the distributed one-time pad data.

Method of provisioning devices with one-time pad data, device for use in such method, and service usage tracking based on one-time pad data

In order to facilitate alignment of a QKD transmitter and QKD receiver, the transmitter is provided with a retro-reflector for returning to the receiver a photon beam originating at the latter. The transmitter is arranged to polarization modulate the retro-reflected beam. The transmitter is provided both with an intensity detector for generating an indication of retro-reflected photon intensity, and an intensity-dependent controller for controlling the QKD transmitter in dependence on the detected photon intensity. In one embodiment, this control involves aborting operation of the QKD transmitter upon an unexpectedly high photon intensity being detected; in another embodiment, the intensity indication is used to control the attenuation of the retro-reflected beam so as stabilize the average retro-reflected photon count per unit time.

QKD transmitter and transmission method

A device stores one-time pad data for use in carrying out various tasks. In order to preserve the ability to carry out important tasks that require the use of one-time data, use of the one-time pad data held by the device is controlled such that an amount of this one-time pad data is only usable by a predetermined set of important tasks comprising at least a replenishment task for replenishing the device with one-time pad data.

Method of managing one-time pad data and device implementing this method

Structures and methods allow: transfer of quantum information represented using the states of light to a representation using the states of matter systems; transfer of quantum information represented by the states of matter systems to a representation using the states of light; and error resistant encoding of quantum information using entangled states of matter and light to minimize errors.

Quantum information conversion between matter and light representations

A method of establishing a shared secret random cryptographic key between a sender and a recipient using a quantum communications channel is described. The method comprises: generating a plurality of random quantum states of a quantum entity, each random state being defined by a randomly selected one of a first plurality of bases in Hilbert space, transmitting the plurality of random quantum states of the quantum entity via the quantum channel to a recipient, measuring the quantum state of each of the received quantum states of the quantum entity with respect to a randomly selected one of a second plurality of bases in Hilbert space, transmitting to the recipient composition information describing a subset of the plurality of random quantum states, analysing the received composition information and the measured quantum states corresponding to the subset to derive a first statistical distribution describing the subset of transmitted quantum states and a second statistical distribution describing the corresponding measured quantum states, establishing the level of confidence in the validity of the plurality of transmitted random quantum states by verifying that the first and second statistical distributions are sufficiently similar, deriving a first binary sting and a second binary string, correlated to the first binary string, respectively from the transmitted and received plurality of quantum states not in the subset, and carrying out a reconciliation of the second binary string to the first binary string by using error correction techniques to establish the shared secret random cryptographic key from the first and second binary strings.

Quantum cryptography

Nonlinear elements can efficiently implement quantum information processing systems such as controlled phase shifters, non-absorbing detectors including parity detectors, quantum subspace projections, non-absorbing Bell state analyzers, non-absorbing encoders/entanglers, and fundamental quantum gates such as CNOT gates. The non-absorbing detectors permit improvements in the efficiency of a probabilistic quantum gate by permitting reuse of the same photonic resources during multiple passes through the probabilistic gate.

Quantum coherent systems and operations

Various method and system embodiments of the present invention are directed to executing bit-commitment protocols. In one embodiment of the present invention, a method for executing a bit-commitment protocol for transmitting a bit from a first party to a second party comprises preparing a three qubits are entangled in a W-state, and storing a first of the three qubits in a first storage device controlled by the first party, a second of the three qubits is stored in a second storage device controlled by the second party, and a third of the three qubits is stored in a third storage device controlled by a third party. The bit is revealed to the second party by transmitting the first and third qubits to the second party and measuring the states of the three qubits to which of the entangled W-states the three qubits are in.

Methods and systems for executing bit-commitment protocols that are based on entangled quantum states and a third party

A photonic interconnect system avoids high capacitance electric interconnects by using optical signals to communicate data between devices. The system can provide massively parallel information output by mapping logical addresses to frequency bands, so that modulation of a selected frequency band can encode information for a specific location corresponding to the logical address. Wavelength-specific directional couplers, modulators, and detectors for the photonic interconnect system can be efficiently fabricated at defects in a photonic bandgap crystal. The interconnect system can be used for both classical and quantum information processing.

Photonic interconnect system

Various embodiments of the present invention are directed to methods and systems for circumventing, and altering transmission-channel users of, transmission-channel disruptions. In one embodiment of the present invention, a source encodes information in a first signal and transmits the first signal in a source channel to a multiplexer. The multiplexer distributes the first signal over N transmission channels. A demultiplexer combines the signals distributed over the N transmission channels into a second signal encoding of the information. The distribution system also includes a detector that receives the second signal output from the demultiplexer, and one or more detectors that receive one or more additional signals output from the demultiplexer. The additional signals are produced by the demultiplexer when a disruption occurs in one or more of the transmission channels and are used to alert transmission-channel users of the disruption.

Methods and systems for avoiding transmission-channel disruptions

Quantum information processing structures and methods use photons and four-level matter systems in electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) arrangements for one and two-qubit quantum gates, two-photon phase shifters, and Bell state measurement devices. For efficient coupling of the matter systems to the photons while decoupling the matter systems from the phonon bath, molecular cages or molecular tethers maintain the atoms within the electromagnetic field of the photon, e.g., in the evanescent field surrounding the core of an optical fiber carrying the photons. To reduce decoherence caused by spontaneous emissions, the matter systems can be embedded in photonic bandgap crystals or the matter systems can be selected to include metastable energy levels.

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Bristol, United Kingdom

Timothy Paul Spiller