Quantum Communications

Overview

Quantum communications is a field that explores using the principles of quantum physics to secure and enhance communication protocols. It leverages the unique properties of quantum systems, such as superposition and entanglement, to enable secure transmission and manipulation of information. The main motivation behind quantum communications is to address the challenge of secure communication in the presence of potential eavesdroppers or attackers. Traditional classical communication methods, such as encryption, can be vulnerable to attacks, especially with the advent of powerful quantum computers that could break conventional cryptographic algorithms. Quantum communications offers several key concepts and protocols:

  1. Quantum Key Distribution (QKD): QKD is a protocol that allows two parties to establish a shared secret key with unconditional security. It utilises the principles of quantum mechanics to detect any eavesdropping attempts, ensuring that the key remains secure. Examples of QKD protocols include BB84 and E91.
  2. Quantum Teleportation: Quantum teleportation is a protocol that enables the transfer of quantum states from one location to another without physically moving the particles. It relies on the entanglement of particles to transmit the quantum information instantaneously, making it useful for secure quantum communication.
  3. Quantum Cryptography: Quantum cryptography is a field that focuses on developing cryptographic schemes that utilize quantum properties for encryption and decryption. Quantum key distribution is one example of quantum cryptography, but other quantum encryption algorithms are also being explored.
  4. Quantum Channel Coding: Quantum channel coding aims to develop efficient methods to transmit quantum information through noisy and lossy channels. It involves techniques to protect the quantum states from errors and ensure reliable communication.
  5. Quantum Networks: Quantum networks aim to connect multiple nodes or users in a distributed manner, enabling secure communication and quantum information processing. These networks can facilitate tasks such as quantum teleportation, distributed quantum computing, and secure multiparty communication.

Our interests

We are interested in developing novel, reference frame independent protocols for quantum communication. The development of reference frame independent communication channels will ensure that information transferred between two parties shares the same security as in standard quantum communications, but doesn’t require a previously agreed upon static reference frame of both parties. Just imagine if you could only receive quantum text messages when your phone was perfectly aligned with the phone of the sender at the time of message transmission!