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International Conference on Natural Computation (ICNC)

Information Reconciliation Protocol in Quantum Key Distribution System

Hao Yan, Tienan Ren, Xiang Peng, Xiaxiang Lin, Wei Jiang, Tian Liu, Hong Mei Guo

Published Jan 1, 2008• 46 citations
Publisher

Abstract

In the system of quantum key distribution (QKD), errors may occur in the initial keys due to system noise or eavesdropping during the transmission on quantum channel. The goal of information reconciliation is to remove these errors by exchanging messages on an authenticated public channel. In this paper, we discuss the problem of secrete key reconciliation (SKR) in QKD, analyze the cascade protocol used for SKR, then modify it according to our conclusion. Experiments have shown that the modified protocol is of much higher efficiency.

DOI
10.1109/icnc.2008.755

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Acta Sinica Quantum Optica•Jan 1, 2010•3 citations
In the system of quantum key distribution (QKD), errors may occur in the initial keys due to system noise or eavesdropping during the transmission on quantum channel. The goal of information reconciliation is to remove these errors by exchanging messages on an authenticated public channel. In this paper, we discuss the problem of secrete key reconciliation (SKR) in QKD, analyze the cascade protocol used for SKR, then modify it according to our conclusion. Experiments have shown that the modified protocol is of much higher efficiency.
CASCADE protocol is an error detection and correction (EDC) method proposed firstly for use in quantum key distribution (QKD) systems. It is used to detect and correct all the errors in keys transmitted over a noisy quantum channel. This is done by sending some redundant information about the key to receiver as usual. However, just as differently, this extra information is sent over another noiseless classical channel after the quantum transmission is completely finished. Briefly, all the errors in noisy quantum communication are detected and corrected by a later noiseless classical communication using CASCADE protocol. In QKD literature, this EDC process is also called as information reconciliation (IR) or secret key reconciliation (SKR). For an IR protocol in QKD, one of the main performance measures is efficiency which depends on the amount of redundant information sent to make EDC possible. Since this extra information is transmitted over public channels, everyone can get it easily. Because this can damage the secrecy of keys that must be kept secret from third parties, more efficient, that is revealing less information about keys, IR methods are needed. In this paper, we present more efficient implementations of CASCADE protocol, using some inherent information already available in the protocol, exactly known bits and already known parities. This information is used in error detection and correction steps of the protocol to decrease the redundancy in redundant information. Our experiments have shown that the resulting protocols have higher efficiency than both all the previous CASCADE versions and several other more recently proposed IR methods.
CASCADE protocol is an error detection and correction (EDC) method proposed firstly for use in quantum key distribution (QKD) systems. It is used to detect and correct all the errors in keys transmitted over a noisy quantum channel. This is done by sending some redundant information about the key to receiver as usual. However, just as differently, this extra information is sent over another noiseless classical channel after the quantum transmission is completely finished. Briefly, all the errors in noisy quantum communication are detected and corrected by a later noiseless classical communication using CASCADE protocol. In QKD literature, this EDC process is also called as information reconciliation (IR) or secret key reconciliation (SKR). For an IR protocol in QKD, one of the main performance measures is efficiency which depends on the amount of redundant information sent to make EDC possible. Since this extra information is transmitted over public channels, everyone can get it easily. Because this can damage the secrecy of keys that must be kept secret from third parties, more efficient, that is revealing less information about keys, IR methods are needed. In this paper, we present more efficient implementations of CASCADE protocol, using some inherent information already available in the protocol, exactly known bits and already known parities. This information is used in error detection and correction steps of the protocol to decrease the redundancy in redundant information. Our experiments have shown that the resulting protocols have higher efficiency than both all the previous CASCADE versions and several other more recently proposed IR methods.
The rate at which a secure key can be generated in a quantum key distribution (QKD) protocol is limited by the channel loss and the quantum bit-error rate (QBER). Increases to the QBER can stem from detector noise, channel noise, or the presence of an eavesdropper, Eve. Eve is capable of obtaining information of the unsecure key by performing an attack on the quantum channel or by listening to all discussion performed via a noiseless public channel. Conventionally a QKD protocol will perform the information reconciliation over the authenticated public channel, revealing the parity bits used to correct for any quantum bit errors. In this invited paper, the possibility of limiting the information revealed to Eve during the information reconciliation is considered. Using a covert communication channel for the transmission of the parity bits, secure key rates are possible at much higher QBERs. This is demonstrated through the simulation of a polarization based QKD system implementing the BB84 protocol, showing significant improvement of the SKRs over the conventional QKD protocols.
Quantum key distribution (QKD) relies on quantum and classical procedures in order to achieve the growing of a secret random string -the key- known only to the two parties executing the protocol. Limited intrinsic efficiency of the protocol, imperfect devices and eavesdropping produce errors and information leakage from which the set of measured signals -the raw key- must be stripped in order to distill a final, information theoretically secure, key. The key distillation process is a classical one in which basis reconciliation, error correction and privacy amplification protocols are applied to the raw key. This cleaning process is known as information reconciliation and must be done in a fast and efficient way to avoid cramping the performance of the QKD system. Brassard and Salvail proposed a very simple and elegant protocol to reconcile keys in the secret-key agreement context, known as Cascade, that has become the de-facto standard for all QKD practical implementations. However, it is highly interactive, requiring many communications between the legitimate parties and its efficiency is not optimal, imposing an early limit to the maximum tolerable error rate. In this paper we describe a low-density parity-check reconciliation protocol that improves significantly on these problems. The protocol exhibits better efficiency and limits the number of uses of the communications channel. It is also able to adapt to different error rates while remaining efficient, thus reaching longer distances or higher secure key rate for a given QKD system.
Quantum key distribution (QKD) relies on quantum and classical procedures in order to achieve the growing of a secret random string -the key- known only to the two parties executing the protocol. Limited intrinsic efficiency of the protocol, imperfect devices and eavesdropping produce errors and information leakage from which the set of measured signals -the raw key- must be stripped in order to distill a final, information theoretically secure, key. The key distillation process is a classical one in which basis reconciliation, error correction and privacy amplification protocols are applied to the raw key. This cleaning process is known as information reconciliation and must be done in a fast and efficient way to avoid cramping the performance of the QKD system. Brassard and Salvail proposed a very simple and elegant protocol to reconcile keys in the secret-key agreement context, known as Cascade, that has become the de-facto standard for all QKD practical implementations. However, it is highly interactive, requiring many communications between the legitimate parties and its efficiency is not optimal, imposing an early limit to the maximum tolerable error rate. In this paper we describe a low-density parity-check reconciliation protocol that improves significantly on these problems. The protocol exhibits better efficiency and limits the number of uses of the communications channel. It is also able to adapt to different error rates while remaining efficient, thus reaching longer distances or higher secure key rate for a given QKD system.