Keyless Semi-Quantum Point-to-point Communication Protocol with Low Resource Requirements.

Area of Science:

• Quantum Information Science
• Cybersecurity
• Telecommunications

Background:

• Full quantum communication devices are not portable, and classical devices lack quantum-resistant channels.
• Semi-Quantum Communication (SQC) aims to enable secure communication on portable devices by reducing quantum requirements for receivers.
• Existing SQC protocols suffer from low qubit efficiency and complex hardware, with entanglement-based protocols requiring linear Entanglement Preservation Time (EPT) and quregister size.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose novel keyless Semi-Quantum Communication (SQC) protocols that overcome the limitations of existing methods.
• To enhance the portability and efficiency of secure communication systems for devices.
• To develop protocols resistant to quantum computing threats and practical for real-world deployment.

Main Methods:

• Introduction of two new keyless SQC protocols: Economic Keyless Semi-Quantum Point-to-point Communication (EKSQPC) and Rate Estimation EKSQPC (REKSQPC).
• Development of a new quantum message transmission operation named Tele-Fetch.
• Analysis of protocol performance regarding qubit efficiency, hardware complexity, Entanglement Preservation Time (EPT), and quregister size.

Main Results:

• The proposed EKSQPC and REKSQPC protocols achieve theoretically constant minimal EPT and quregister size, independent of message length.
• The protocols demonstrate the ability to detect Measure and Replay Attacks (MRA) with low overhead.
• REKSQDC exhibits tolerance to transmission impairments and environmental perturbations, unlike many quantum communication protocols.

Conclusions:

• The new keyless SQC protocols offer a practical solution for secure communication on portable devices, addressing limitations in qubit efficiency and hardware complexity.
• The protocols' security relies on physical principles, similar to Quantum Key Distribution (QKD), providing a robust alternative to mathematically complex cryptography.
• EKSQPC and REKSQPC represent a significant advancement in making quantum-resistant communication accessible and feasible for portable technology.