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IEEE photonics journal

Photon-Counting Security Tagging and Verification Using Optically Encoded QR Codes

Adam S. Markman, Bahram Javidi, Mark Mohammad Tehranipoor

Published Jan 31, 2014• 90 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We propose an optical security method for object authentication using photon-counting encryption implemented with phase encoded QR codes. By combining the full phase double-random-phase encryption with photon-counting imaging method and applying an iterative Huffman coding technique, we are able to encrypt and compress an image containing primary information about the object. This data can then be stored inside of an optically phase encoded QR code for robust read out, decryption, and authentication. The optically encoded QR code is verified by examining the speckle signature of the optical masks using statistical analysis. Optical experimental results are presented to demonstrate the performance of the system. In addition, experiments with a commercial Smartphone to read the optically encoded QR code are presented. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on integrating photon-counting security with optically phase encoded QR codes.

DOI
10.1109/jphot.2013.2294625

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We propose an optical security method for object authentication using photon-counting encryption implemented with phase encoded QR codes. By combining the full phase double-random-phase encryption with photon-counting imaging method and applying an iterative Huffman coding technique, we are able to encrypt and compress an image containing primary information about the object. This data can then be stored inside of an optically phase encoded QR code for robust read out, decryption, and authentication. The optically encoded QR code is verified by examining the speckle signature of the optical masks using statistical analysis. Optical experimental results are presented to demonstrate the performance of the system. In addition, experiments with a commercial Smartphone to read the optically encoded QR code are presented. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on integrating photon-counting security with optically phase encoded QR codes.
We investigate a full phase based photon-counting double-random-phase encryption (PC-DRPE) method. A photon-counting technique is applied during the encryption process creating sparse images. The statistical distribution of the photon-counting decrypted data for full phase encoding and amplitude phase encoding are derived and their statistical parameters are used for authentication. The performance of the full phase PC-DRPE is compared with the amplitude-based PC-DRPE method. The photon-counting decrypted images make it difficult to visually authenticate the input image; however, advanced correlation filters can be used to authenticate the decrypted images given the correct keys. Initial computational simulations show that the full phase PC-DRPE has the potential to require fewer photons for authentication than the amplitude-based PC-DRPE.\nIn addition, we propose an optical security method for object authentication using photon-counting encryption implemented with phase encoded QR codes. By combining the full phase double-random-phase encryption with photon-counting imaging method and applying an iterative Huffman coding technique, we are able to encrypt and compress an image containing primary information about the object. This data can then be stored inside of an optically phase encoded QR code for robust read out, decryption, and authentication. The optically encoded QR code is verified by examining the speckle signature of the optical masks using statistical analysis. Optical experimental results are presented to demonstrate the performance of the system. In addition, experiments with a commercial Smartphone to read the optically encoded QR code are presented. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on integrating photon-counting security with optically phase encoded QR codes.
The integration of photon-counting imaging techniques and optical encryption systems can improve information authentication robustness against intruder attacks.Photon-counting imaging generates distributions with far fewer photons than conventional imaging, and provides substantial bandwidth reduction by generating a sparse encrypted data.We show that photon-limited encrypted distributions have sufficient information for successful decryption, authentication and signal retrieval.Additional compression of the encrypted distribution is applied by limiting the number of phase values used to reproduce the phase information of the complex-valued encrypted data.The validity of this technique -with and without phase compression -is probed through simulated experiments for two types of input images: alphanumerical signs and dithered natural scenes.
Photon-counting imaging is integrated with optical encryption for information authentication. An image is double-random-phase encrypted, and a photon-limited encrypted image is obtained. The photon-counting encrypted image is generated with few photons and appears sparse; however, we show that it has sufficient information for decryption and authentication. The decrypted image cannot be easily visualized so that an additional layer of information protection is achieved. The authentication is carried out by recognition algorithms. This approach may make the verification process more robust against attacks. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on integrating photon-counting imaging and encryption for authentication.
In this paper, we develop a new optical information authentication system based on compressed double-random-phase-encoded images and quick-response (QR) codes, where the parameters of optical lightwave are used as keys for optical decryption and the QR code is a key for verification. An input image attached with QR code is first optically encoded in a simplified double random phase encoding (DRPE) scheme without using interferometric setup. From the single encoded intensity pattern recorded by a CCD camera, a compressed double-random-phase-encoded image, i.e., the sparse phase distribution used for optical decryption, is generated by using an iterative phase retrieval technique with QR code. We compare this technique to the other two methods proposed in literature, i.e., Fresnel domain information authentication based on the classical DRPE with holographic technique and information authentication based on DRPE and phase retrieval algorithm. Simulation results show that QR codes are effective on improving the security and data sparsity of optical information encryption and authentication system.
The integration of photon-counting imaging techniques to optical encryption systems permits to increase information authentication robustness against intruder attacks. Photon-counting imaging generates distributions with only few photons and provides substantial bandwidth reduction by requiring only a sparse encrypted data. We show that photon-limited encrypted distributions have sufficient information for decryption, authentication and signal retrieval. Different approaches to compress the information on encrypted distributions are considered and analyzed.
We propose an image encryption system based on phase mask multiplexing and photon counting imaging (PCI) technique for multiple image authentications and digital hologram security. Multiple images to be authenticated are converted into phase-only images using a phase-retrieval algorithm in fractional Fourier transform domain. The multiple phase-only images are multiplexed into a single phase-only mask and it is further encrypted into a complex-valued function. The photon-limited image is generated by applying the PCI technique to a complex-valued function. For decryption, the photon-limited decrypted images are obtained after applying the appropriate keys. The photon-limited decrypted image contains sufficient information for verification because this image has sparse representation. To verify the photon-limited decrypted image, the optical correlation filters can be used. The proposed system has also been used for hologram security. For hologram security, the system provides multiple layers of security by hiding multiple encrypted images. The computer simulation results have been presented. The authentication scheme has been tested for securing three-dimensional information through experimentally recorded Fresnel digital hologram.