IGI Global eBooks
Quantum Cryptography
Ahmed Mahmoud Abbas
Abstract
Quantum cryptography is known the most up-to-date in domain of realistic cryptography notably the menace of quantum cryptanalysis which threatens security firmness of public key cryptography. Quantum cryptography has a famous scheme known as Quantum Key Exchange (QKE), that administrates generation and distribution of a secured random key between legitimate channel users depicted as sender and receiver. Consequently, such key could be used as a key for one-time pad hybrid cryptosystems to encrypt and authenticate messages over a quantum channel. (QKE) is based on unifying quantum physics concepts and information theory with conventional cryptographic schemes that target to produce a short secret session key between any two legitimate parties. An important phase in key creation of BB84 protocol is Privacy Amplification phase where two interconnecting parties distill highly secret shared key from a larger body of shared key, which is only partially secret. The two legitimate parties publicly exchange information to create a compressed key free from biased bits known by an eavesdropper.