PFI:AIR - TT: Prototyping Untrusted-Device Quantum Cryptography

这个PFI: AIR技术翻译项目的重点是通过构建一个实用和安全的随机数生成器原型，将量子信息理论的突破性发现转化为实践。随机数是现代信息处理中不可缺少的资源，在计算机和通信设备中无处不在。特别是，它们在许多应用中发挥着至关重要的作用，包括密码学、隐私保证、互联网协议和科学计算。不幸的是，当前的随机数生成器容易受到敌对对手的攻击，从而危及许多系统的安全性。这种安全性的缺乏源于这样一个事实，即没有测试可以确定一串位是否是随机的。因此，人们面临的前景是，必须相信随机数生成器按照宣传的那样运行，因为这不能通过单独观察其输出来验证。如果设备是用户构建的，并且始终处于用户的控制之下，那么这将不是问题。然而，在实践中，这些限制不太可能得到满足。一个基于量子原理的原型硬件随机数生成器将使用光学元件构建并进行测试。该原型的操作是独一无二的，因为它包含一个认证程序，即使用于生成随机性的硬件设备不受信任，也可以保证其输出的随机性。该认证保护用户免受硬件缺陷和蓄意操纵的影响，并且它提供了比市场上任何其他当前解决方案更高的安全性。这个项目旨在通过这样一个随机数生成器的原型来缩小或缩小理论与实验之间的差距。这种生成认证随机数的方法是基于测量纠缠量子态；它最早是由罗杰·科尔贝克在2006年提出的。2014年，AIR-TT项目组的两位成员Yaoyun Shi和Carl Miller给出了第一个实际的安全证明，从根本上降低了实现认证随机数生成器的相关要求。量子信息处理所需的光学元件的最新进展大大提高了基于量子的测量仪器的性能。为了达到项目的目标，团队将通过数值研究和理论分析来检查当前可用组件的功能，以便根据已知的安全需求确定任何不足之处。硬件和协议将相应调整，并根据需要开发新的理论分析。此外，参与该项目的人员，包括博士后、博士研究员和本科生，将通过原型制作和市场研究活动获得创新、创业和技术翻译经验。

This PFI: AIR Technology Translation project focuses on translating breakthrough discoveries in quantum information theory into practice by constructing a practical and secure prototype random number generator. Random numbers are indispensable resources for modern information processing and are ubiquitous in computers and communication devices. In particular, they play a crucial role in many applications, including cryptography, privacy assurance, Internet protocols and scientific computing. Unfortunately current random number generators are vulnerable to hostile adversaries, thus compromising the security of many systems. This lack of security derives from the fact that no test can determine whether or not a string of bits is random. Thus one is faced with the prospect of having to trust that the random number generator operates as advertised, since this cannot be verified by observing its output alone. If the device is user-built and always remains under the user's control, then this will not be an issue. In practice, however, these constraints are not likely to be met. A prototype hardware random number generator, operating on quantum principles, will be built using optical components and tested. The operation of this prototype is unique, since it includes a certification procedure that can guarantee the randomness of its outputs even if the hardware equipment used to generate the randomness is not trusted. This certification protects the user against hardware imperfections and also deliberate manipulation, and it offers higher security than any other current solution on the market. This project aims to narrow or close the gaps between theory and experiment through prototyping such a random number generator. This method of generating certified random numbers is based on measuring entangled quantum states; it was first proposed in 2006 by Roger Colbeck. In 2014, Yaoyun Shi and Carl Miller, two members of the AIR-TT project team, gave the first practical security proof, which fundamentally lowered the requirements associated with implementing a certified random number generator. Recent advances in the optical components needed for quantum information processing have greatly improved the performance of quantum-based measurement instruments. To reach the project's goal, the team will examine the capabilities of currently available components, through numerical studies and theoretical analysis, in order to identify any shortfalls in view of the known security requirements. The hardware and protocols will be adjusted accordingly, and new theoretical analyses will be developed as needed. In addition, personnel involved in this project, including postdoctoral, doctoral researchers and undergraduate students, will receive innovation, entrepreneurship, and technology translation experiences through the prototyping effort and market research activities.