Events
ULTRA-LONG FIBER LASERS: A NEW CONCEPT FOR SECURE KEY DISTRIBUTION
00:00 27-05-2007
The distribution of a secret key is most probably the
main Achilles? heel of any secure communication system. To
establish completely secure information transfer it is necessary
for the two users to share a secret key, known only to them, before
the communication can take place. In many practical scenarios,
especially when a large distance separates the two users, this
requirement is difficult to realize because secure transmission of
the key requires a previously shared (additional) key. This
loophole was one of the main incentives behind the attempts to
develop physically (as opposed to algorithmically) secure key
distribution schemes based on the fundamental properties of quantum
mechanics. However, the complete security of quantum key
distribution (QKD) systems is not achieved without a price.
Theoretical and experimental studies show that channel attenuation,
noise and detectors dark-counts limit the key-establishing rates
and the operational ranges of QKD systems. To date, the longest
demonstrated QKD link is 122km long with actual key formation rate
of ~ 0.2 bit/sec10. In this talk I will present and analyze a new
concept for key distribution, based on establishing a laser
oscillation between sender and receiver. The suggested architecture
offers potential key-establishing rates which are larger by several
orders of magnitude than those of the currently demonstrated QKD
systems, especially at long communication ranges. Although,
strictly, the new system does not provide unconditional security,
it does provide security in the sense that it allows the
communicating parties to reduce almost arbitrarily the
eavesdropping ability of an adversary. Such a system deserves
serious consideration as a building block for secure communication
solutions, especially for long haul links
main Achilles? heel of any secure communication system. To
establish completely secure information transfer it is necessary
for the two users to share a secret key, known only to them, before
the communication can take place. In many practical scenarios,
especially when a large distance separates the two users, this
requirement is difficult to realize because secure transmission of
the key requires a previously shared (additional) key. This
loophole was one of the main incentives behind the attempts to
develop physically (as opposed to algorithmically) secure key
distribution schemes based on the fundamental properties of quantum
mechanics. However, the complete security of quantum key
distribution (QKD) systems is not achieved without a price.
Theoretical and experimental studies show that channel attenuation,
noise and detectors dark-counts limit the key-establishing rates
and the operational ranges of QKD systems. To date, the longest
demonstrated QKD link is 122km long with actual key formation rate
of ~ 0.2 bit/sec10. In this talk I will present and analyze a new
concept for key distribution, based on establishing a laser
oscillation between sender and receiver. The suggested architecture
offers potential key-establishing rates which are larger by several
orders of magnitude than those of the currently demonstrated QKD
systems, especially at long communication ranges. Although,
strictly, the new system does not provide unconditional security,
it does provide security in the sense that it allows the
communicating parties to reduce almost arbitrarily the
eavesdropping ability of an adversary. Such a system deserves
serious consideration as a building block for secure communication
solutions, especially for long haul links