Unconditional Security of Quantum Key Distribution over Arbitrarily Long Distances

1998/03/31 by Hoi-Kwong Lo, H. F. Chau · 13 citations
Computer Science · Mathematics · Physics and Astronomy · #Channel (broadcasting) #Computer network #Computer science #Computer security #Key (lock) #Mathematics #Physics #Quantum #Quantum Computing Algorithms and Architecture #Quantum Information and Cryptography #Quantum Mechanics and Applications #Quantum capacity #Quantum channel #Quantum computer #Quantum cryptography #Quantum information #Quantum key distribution #Quantum mechanics #Quantum network #Scheme (mathematics) #Theoretical computer science #quant-ph

paper · pdf · doi:10.1126/science.283.5410.2050

published as Science 283 (1999) 2050-2056 · This reprint version contains the same material as the one published in Science 283, 2050-2056 (1999). We also include the refereed supplementary Notes (as in http://www.sciencemag.org/feature/data/984035.shl) explicitly in the appendix for easy reference

openalex publication_date 1999/03/26 · arxiv created 1999/12/06 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05

Abstract

Quantum key distribution is widely thought to offer unconditional security in communication between two users. Unfortunately, a widely accepted proof of its security in the presence of source, device, and channel noises has been missing. This long-standing problem is solved here by showing that, given fault-tolerant quantum computers, quantum key distribution over an arbitrarily long distance of a realistic noisy channel can be made unconditionally secure. The proof is reduced from a noisy quantum scheme to a noiseless quantum scheme and then from a noiseless quantum scheme to a noiseless classical scheme, which can then be tackled by classical probability theory.

Citations

• Semiclassical Fourier Transform for Quantum Computation
• Teleporting an unknown quantum state via dual classical and Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen channels
• Can Quantum-Mechanical Description of Physical Reality Be Considered Complete?
• Quantum repeaters based on entanglement purification
• Quantum cryptography using any two nonorthogonal states
• A single quantum cannot be cloned
• Quantum cryptography based on Bell’s theorem
• Experimental Test of Local Hidden-Variable Theories
• Quantum Privacy Amplification and the Security of Quantum Cryptography over Noisy Channels
• Optimal eavesdropping in quantum cryptography. II. A quantum circuit
• Communication by EPR devices
• On the Einstein Podolsky Rosen paradox
• Quantum computations: algorithms and error correction
• Conjugate coding
• Fault Tolerant Quantum Computation with Constant Error

Cited by

• Optimal quantum networks and one-shot entropies
• Adversarial Reinforcement Learning for Adaptive Eavesdropping in BB84 Quantum Key Distribution
• Effect of detector dead times on the security evaluation of differential-phase-shift quantum key distribution against sequential attacks
• The locking-decoding frontier for generic dynamics
• High-Dimensional Quantum Key Distribution based on Multicore Fiber using Silicon Photonic Integrated Circuits
• Experimental quantum key distribution with active phase randomization
• Quantum key distribution with dual detectors
• Deterministic quantum key distribution based on Gaussian-modulated EPR correlations
• Quantum Key Distribution Based on Arbitrarily Weak Distillable Entangled States
• Making the decoy-state measurement-device-independent quantum key distribution practically useful
• Improving the capacity of the Boström-Felbinger protocol
• Decoy State Quantum Key Distribution
• Full Security of Quantum Key Distribution From No-Signaling Constraints