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IEEE Journal of Oceanic Engineering

Assessing Feasibility of Secure Quantum Communications Involving Underwater Assets

Marco O. Lanzagorta, Jeffrey K. Uhlmann

Published Mar 14, 2019• 20 citations
Publisher

Abstract

In this paper, we apply a mathematical model of the quantum bit error rate to assess the viability of quantum key distribution (QKD) protocols for secure and covert underwater communications. We consider scenarios that may include passive sensor arrays, coordinated underwater vehicles, and surface and aerial assets. This analysis suggests that single-photon QKD can potentially be used effectively at depths between 60 and 110 m in clear waters, with the precise depth depending in part on ambient illumination levels. We discuss how diurnal variations in background illumination can be exploited in some applications to achieve improved communications rate and/or reliability when using QKD or other secure optical protocol.

DOI
10.1109/joe.2019.2894477

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In this paper, we apply a mathematical model of the quantum bit error rate to assess the viability of quantum key distribution (QKD) protocols for secure and covert underwater communications. We consider scenarios that may include passive sensor arrays, coordinated underwater vehicles, and surface and aerial assets. This analysis suggests that single-photon QKD can potentially be used effectively at depths between 60 and 110 m in clear waters, with the precise depth depending in part on ambient illumination levels. We discuss how diurnal variations in background illumination can be exploited in some applications to achieve improved communications rate and/or reliability when using QKD or other secure optical protocol.
We investigate the optical absorption and scattering properties of underwater media pertinent to our underwater free space quantum key distribution (QKD) channel model. With the vector radiative transfer theory and Monte Carlo method, we obtain the attenuation of photons, the fidelity of the scattered photons, the quantum bit error rate, and the sifted key generation rate of underwater quantum communication. It can be observed from our simulations that the most secure single photon underwater free space QKD is feasible in the clearest ocean water.
In this work we study the underwater optical channel, making a feasibility analysis on the development of a high-speed communication system with security guaranteed by Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) protocol. In particular, we introduce a new model for the attenuation of the underwater medium which includes the effect of turbulence within the marine environment.We report the performance of the system focusing on the most important figures of merit, such as the secret key rate of the quantum channel and the bit rate of the classical channel at the physical layer as a function of the total link range. We carried out these analyses depending on various environmental conditions, such as the geographical area, depth, path-loss and turbulence models. The communication protocols considered are the BB84 with time-bin encoding for QKD and baseband On-Off Keying (OOK) modulation for classical data communication for a maximum link range of 100 meters.
Underwater quantum key distribution (QKD) has potential applications in absolutely secure underwater communication. However, the performance of underwater QKD is limited by the optical elements, background light, and dark counts of the detector. In this paper, we propose a modified formula for the quantum bit error rate (QBER), which takes into account the effect of detector efficiency on the QBER caused by the background light. Then we calculate the QBER of the polarization encoding BB84 protocol in Jerlov-type seawater by analyzing the effect of the background light and optical components in a more realistic situation. Finally, we further analyze the final key rate and the maximum secure communication distance in three propagation modes, i.e., upward, downward, and horizontal modes. We find that secure QKD can be performed in the clearest Jerlov-type seawater at a distance of hundreds of meters, even in the worst downward propagation mode. Specifically, by optimizing the system parameters, it is possible to securely transmit information with a rate of 67 kbits/s at a distance of 100 m in the seawater channel with an attenuation coefficient of 0.03/m at night. For practical underwater QKD, the performance can also be improved by using decoy states. Our results are useful for long-distance underwater quantum communication.
Quantum cryptography (QC) is envisioned as a solution for global key distribution through fiber optic, free space and underwater optical communication due to its unconditional security. In view of this, this paper investigates underwater free space quantum key distribution (QKD) model for enhanced transmission distance, secret key rates and security. It is reported that secure underwater free space QKD is feasible in the clearest ocean water with the sifted key rates up to 207[Formula: see text]kbps. This paper extends this work by testing performance of optimized decoy state QKD protocol with underwater free space communication model. The attenuation of photons, quantum bit error rate and the sifted key generation rate of underwater quantum communication is obtained with vector radiative transfer theory and Monte Carlo method. It is observed from the simulations that optimized decoy state QKD evidently enhances the underwater secret key transmission distance as well as secret key rates.
Underwater wireless communication is rapidly advancing, finding applications in diverse fields such as oceanography, defense, and commercial ventures. However, ensuring security in such transmissions is crucial due to the sensitive nature of the data involved and the challenges posed by the underwater environment. While classical encryption techniques provide some level of security, the emergence of quantum computing presents opportunities and challenges. Quantum key distribution (QKD) offers theoretically unbreakable encryption, making it an attractive solution. Extending QKD capabilities to underwater environments is a significant endeavor in this context. This paper explores the feasibility of applying an entanglement-based non-coherent QKD protocol inspired by the BBM92 protocol to underwater visible light communication (VLC)/QKD systems. We investigate the system’s design criteria and analyze its secret key performance, addressing challenges such as water absorption and turbulence-induced fading, focusing on addressing unauthorized receiver attacks. Through analysis and the considered case study, the feasibility and efficacy of this approach are explored, contributing to the advancement of secure underwater communications.
Security is a crucial aspect of underwater acoustic networks, that are often used in mission critical scenarios, such as coastal surveillance, rapid environmental assessment and mine countermeasure applications. The broadcast nature of the acoustic channel makes it vulnerable to a variety of attacks, such as spoofing, men-in-the-middle and jamming. Moreover, the lack of a standardized key distribution system makes data confidentiality challenging. In this paper we investigate the use of quantum key distribution (QKD) in underwater networks, in order to ensure confidentiality and integrity of the communication. While in the terrestrial domain the use of the one-time-pad protocol (requiring the key length to be equal to the message length) is limited by the low rate of the QKD rate compared to the bitrate of radio transmissions, in the underwater domain the limited bandwidth of the acoustic channel makes QKD a valid approach also for the one-time-pad protocol. The system is tested both with an emulator and a field test: results show that QKD can be a valuable system to secure underwater acoustic networks.