In quantum cryptography network routing selection is an important task for performing end-to-end key agreement. In the paper, we propose a stochastic routing algorithm based on distance vector and residual key bits. The main idea is that after all the shortest paths have been obtained, the communication key bits can be transmitted randomly in any path with enough residual key bits. Simulation results show that under stochastic routing algorithm a higher security level can be provided than the one under traditional routing algorithm, e.g. Routing Information Protocol (RIP), in quantum cryptography network.
In quantum cryptography network routing selection is an important task for performing end-to-end key agreement. In the paper, we propose a stochastic routing algorithm based on distance vector and residual key bits. The main idea is that after all the shortest paths have been obtained, the communication key bits can be transmitted randomly in any path with enough residual key bits. Simulation results show that under stochastic routing algorithm a higher security level can be provided than the one under traditional routing algorithm, e.g. Routing Information Protocol (RIP), in quantum cryptography network.
With the development of the Internet, information security has attracted great attention in today’s society, and quantum cryptography communication network based on quantum key distribution (QKD) is a very important part of this field, since the quantum key distribution combined with one-time-pad encryption scheme can guarantee the unconditional security of the information. The secret key generated by quantum key distribution protocols is a very valuable resource, so making full use of key resources is particularly important. Software definition network (SDN) is a new type of network architecture, and it separates the control plane and the data plane of network devices through OpenFlow technology, thus it realizes the flexible control of the network resources. In this paper, a quantum cryptography communication network model based on SDN is proposed to realize the flexible control of quantum key resources in the whole cryptography communication network. Moreover, we propose a routing algorithm which takes into account both the hops and the end-to-end availible keys, so that the secret key generated by QKD can be used effectively. We also simulate this quantum cryptography communication network, and the result shows that based on SDN and the proposed routing algorithm the performance of this network is improved since the effective use of the quantum key resources.
Quantum key distribution (QKD) is an encrypted communication technique based on the principles of quantum mechanics that ensures communication security by exploiting the properties of quantum states. Currently, the transmission efficiency of the QKD system is low. Trusted relay technology is used to solve this problem and achieve long-distance transmission. However, trusted relaying alone cannot decrypt the issues of poor link stability and the low utilization of key resources. To further optimize the system performance, we propose a dynamic routing algorithm. One of the improvement schemes includes the following: firstly, an adjustable-size quantum key pool (QKP) is designed, which can dynamically adjust the size of the refreshing pool according to the actual demand. Secondly, the utilization of key resources is improved by using the residual quantum key model to dynamically obtain the remaining key amount in the QKP and set the key amount threshold. We calculate the link-blocking probability and track the blocking intensity and blocking entry by combining the Poisson process, thus realizing the evaluation of the link stability. Finally, the number of remaining keys in the QKP and the link-blocking probability combine with the random wandering model as the basis of the route selection for the QKD dynamic routing algorithm to achieve efficient key path selection. We validated the algorithm by comparing it with other algorithms on the Mininet simulation platform, and the algorithm proved to have a better performance in terms of congestion avoidance, delay reduction, and improved QKD efficiency. This scheme provides a novel and efficient way to solve the problems in existing QKD systems. It effectively improves the transmission efficiency and strengthens the system’s security by dynamically obtaining the critical volume, accurately evaluating the link state, and selecting the optimal critical path.
Due to the fact that quantum networks can provide higher security in communications, many related issues have been presented and addressed recently. One of the most important issues is to study the routing in quantum networks with multiple source-destination pairs while maximizing the total end-to-end entanglement rate. In previous studies, the shortest paths are typically selected as the entanglement paths for a source-destination pair to increase the total end-to-end entanglement rate. However, this approach is only efficient once the network resources are sufficient. Moreover, source-destination pairs only require a specific entanglement rate rather than the shortest paths. Therefore, in this paper, we suppose that each source-destination pair requires an upper bound of the entanglement rate. Under this assumption, a novel problem is proposed to construct entanglement paths for a set of multiple source-destination pairs such that the total end-to-end entanglement rate is maximized. We then propose a greedy algorithm to solve the problem. Finally, the simulation is conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm.
The mechanism of transferring and routing information in quantum and classical network are basically different. The basic idea and working principle of quantum networks is based on a unique feature of quantum mechanics known as entanglement. Since entanglement generation rate is a key factor for quantum networks it can be considered as a route metric. In this paper, we propose two different protocols for local entanglement routing in a quantum ring network. In the first protocol, local link entanglement rate is considered as a route metric. However, the routing decision in the second protocol is made based on finding the shortest path between source and destination. It is shown that though local link entanglement rate is decisive criterion for routing in the first algorithm, the second algorithm can reach higher end-to-end entanglement rate.
In recent years, quantum communication networks have emerged as a promising alternative to classical communication networks for the transmission of quantum information. One of the challenges for achieving optimal performance in quantum communication networks is the efficient routing of quantum signals across multiple paths. To address this, a variety of routing protocols have been proposed, including multi-path routing protocols. Multi-path routing involves sending a quantum signal through multiple distinct paths simultaneously to reduce delays in the transmission of quantum information. By distributing the quantum information over multiple paths, this approach can provide significant performance improvements, including reduced latency and higher throughput. In addition, multi-path routing can enable new possibilities for the security of quantum communication networks, such as more secure entanglement swapping protocols and improved protection against eavesdropping. In this paper, we investigate the performance of multi-path routing protocols in multi-node quantum communication networks. We consider two approaches to multi-path routing, a basic routing approach based on shortest path optimization, and a more advanced approach based on graph partitions. We evaluate the performance of these protocols in a range of multi-node networks, with focus on the trade-off between latency and throughput. The results show that multi-path routing yields significant performance improvements in such networks and provides an efficient way for routing quantum signals across multiple paths.
Quantum key distribution (QKD) can provide point-to-point information-theoretic secure key services for two connected users. In fact, the development of QKD networks needs more focus from the scientific community in order to broaden the service scale of QKD technology to deliver end-to-end secure key services. Of course, some recent efforts have been made to develop secure communication protocols based on QKD. However, due to the limited key generation capability of QKD devices, high quantum secure key utilization is the major concern for QKD networks. Since traditional routing techniques do not account for the state of quantum secure keys on links, applying them in QKD networks directly will result in underutilization of quantum secure keys. Therefore, an efficient routing protocol for QKD networks, especially for large-scale QKD networks, is desperately needed. In this study, an efficient routing protocol based on optimized link-state routing, namely QOLSR, is proposed for QKD networks. QOLSR considerably improves quantum key utilization in QKD networks through link-state awareness and path optimization. Simulation results demonstrate the validity and efficiency of the proposed QOLSR routing protocol. Most importantly, with the growth of communication traffic, the benefit becomes even more apparent.