Decoy State Quantum Key Distribution---The Best of Both Worlds

Speaker: Dr. Hoi-Kwong Lo, University of TorontoAbstract: There has been much interest in quantum key distribution. Experimentally, quantum key distribution over 150 km of commercial Telecom fibers has been successfully performed. Commercial quantum cryptographic products are currently being marketed by two start-ups. The crucial issue in quantum key distribution is its security. Unfortunately, all recent experiments are, in principle, insecure due to real-life imperfections. Here, we propose a method that can for the first time make most of those experiments secure by using essentially the same hardware. Our method is to use decoy states to detect eavesdropping attacks. As a consequence, we have the best of both worlds---enjoying unconditional security guaranteed by the fundamental laws of physics and yet surpassing substantially even some of the best experimental performances reported in the literature.[Work done with Xiongfeng Ma and Kai Chen.]Bio: Hoi-Kwong Lo is currently an Associate Professor of the Center for Quantum Information and Quantum Control (CQIQC), at the Dept. of ECE and Dept. of Physics of the University of Toronto. He received his Ph.D. in Physics from Caltech in 1994. After spending two years at the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), Princeton, he joined Hewlett-Packard Labs, Bristol UK in 1996 and became a Senior Member of Technical Staff there in 1997. From 1999 to 2002, he was the Senior VP, R&D and Chief Scientist of MagiQ Technologies, Inc., a firm that has recently been chosen as a top ten company to watch by IEEE Spectrum. Hoi-Kwong Lo was among the first to prove the impossibility of quantum bit commitment and the security of quantum key distribution. His work has been widely reported in scientific press including "Science" and "Science News". His recent work on decoy state QKD (the subject of the present talk) was highlighted recently in a "News Scientists" article. He is a Founding Managing Editor of the journal QIC, which is a leading journal in the field. In 2003, he won a number of honors including Canada Research Chair, Ontario Distinguished Researcher, Premier's Research Excellence Award and Outstanding Young Researcher Award by the Overseas Chinese Physics Association.Host: Dr. Igor Devetak, x.09264, devetak@usc.edu

Location: Hughes Aircraft Electrical Engineering Center (EEB) - -248

Audiences: Everyone Is Invited

Contact: Mayumi Thrasher