NICOP - Search for vulnerabilities of fundamental origin in Quantum Key Distribution
Abstract
QKD (or Quantum Cryptography) is the only method known to send messages in a secureway, no matter the computational capacity an eav""esdropper may have. It is based on fundamentalproperties of Physics at the quantum scale. QKD is invulnerable in theory, but practi""calimperfections may open an opportunity for an eavesdropper, a subject that is much studied. Lessstudied is the possibility of a" fundamental vulnerability. This could occur if the time series of theresults of measurements at the quantum scale turns out to be" not fully random. In fact, there issome basis to speculate that such series is ruled by non-ergodic (deterministic) dynamics, and""hence, that it may be at least partially predictable. Some experimental antecedents exist, but theyare not conclusive. The core of"" this proposal is to explore that possibility.Specifically, our proposal is to subject the time series (of photon detections) produ""ced in thequantum link of a QKD setup to the tools of nonlinear analysis, looking for signatures of nonergodicdynamics. The constr""uction of a ~toy~ QKD link is at the core of the project, to generatethe time series in a controlled way. Some specific conditions"" of design apply, in order the link tobe able to reveal the hypothesized dynamics. In particular, the time series must be dense eno"ughto reveal oscillations of frequency c/L (L is the distance between stations and c is the speed oflight). This cannot be directl"y achieved with the current technical means, but a ~stroboscopic~approach makes it possible. The proposed setup includes pulsed pum""ping with variable pulseduration and repetition rate, time stamped data with resolution ~1-2 ns and a variable value for L,between" a few meters to 60m. Knowing the hypothesized dynamics would allow determiningunder which conditions a QKD setup can be safely use"d or, conversely, eavesdropped. Theconsequences of this project may go beyond the practical impact on the security of QKD.Dependin""g on the obtained results, they may entail a revision of the very foundations ofQuantum Mechanics.The budget of this Project (ONRG"" participation) is a total of $92,322.01 in two years.Salaries are fully afforded by the home institution, and also the materials a"nd supplies to bebought in the local market (Argentina). Our group is experienced on the subject of Bell~sexperiments. In particul"ar, it was the first to close the so-called ~time coincidence~ loophole, in2012. Regarding the use of the tools of nonlinear analys""is, our group detected chaotic attractorsin the Ti:Sapphire laser, and was the first to observe ~optical rogue waves~ in self-pulsi"ng lasers.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Dec 20, 2017
- Source ID
- N629091812021
Entities
People
- Alejandro Hnilo
Organizations
- Office of Naval Research
- United States Navy