Quantum cryptography provides a feasible approach to achieving information-theoretic security in point-to-point communication. In contrast to point-to-point protocols, end-to-end secure quantum communication is particularly promising for large-scale quantum networks. Here, we propose a scheme for end-to-end secure communication with private message authentication. For practical purposes, we demonstrate the scheme in a quantum communication network with optical fibers or free-space links that integrate secure repeaters. Furthermore, we present a route proposal model for routing private messages in a quantum network based on the scheme. As messages are routed through a network, malicious nodes may tamper with the messages passing through them with some probability. Based on authentication results, we use machine learning methods to detect malicious nodes, including supervised and unsupervised algorithms. The simulation results in specific networks show that our methods can effectively detect malicious nodes under different tamper probabilities.

As a popular decentralized and distributed database exhibiting transparency and unforgeability, blockchain has received widespread attention. At the time of writing, its security hinges on classical cryptography, which maintains a high grade of security by exploiting the potentially excessive computational complexity of mathematical problems to be solved by state-of-the-art computers. However, as computational technology develops, this encryption philosophy is likely to be challenged and there is a risk of ’store now and decrypt later’ attacks. A compelling solution to this security threat is to intrinsically integrate blockchain with quantum technology. Against this background, we propose a quantum blockchain scheme relying on quantum secure direct communication (QSDC). Specifically, we conceive QSDC-based blockchain for identity verification, message encryption, and consensus. We also propose an optical network based realization of the proposed QSDC-aided blockchain using present-day technology. Our simulations quantify the benefits of the scheme, especially in terms of its resource utilization. This work provides a new prospect for the intrinsic fusion of quantum information technology and blockchain technology, paving the way for its rapid commercialization.

Quantum network extends the ability to transmit information securely from two-party communication to multi-party communication with arbitrarily long distances. The efficiency of secure communication in a quantum network depends on both the topology of the network and the strategy of communication relays. In this paper, we propose a strategy to build a quantum network integrating various types of quantum secure direct communication (QSDC) schemes. A cost optimization model is presented to measure the cost of transmitting secure messages in a quantum network. Within the model, two types of quantum network strategies, the quantum circuit switching strategy and the quantum packet switching strategy, are proposed and compared. Numerical simulations in a specific network show that the quantum packet switching strategy is more favorable in future quantum networks taking into account robustness and cost required when using different types of QSDC schemes.

Quantum networks leverage the principles of quantum mechanics for information transmission and processing, providing attractive functionalities absent in classical networks. Realizing entanglement distribution among network nodes is one of the important tasks in quantum network applications. Meanwhile, as free-space quantum communication technology advances, protocols adaptable to mobile terminal resource allocation become practical. Here, we propose the message-oriented quantum entanglement distribution protocol called quantum stream control transmission protocol (QSCTP) and illustrate its application within the entanglement distribution network. Through prototype network testing, we validate its efficacy in the intended application, offering a promising avenue for the seamless integration of quantum networks and paving the path toward their application.

Quantum secure direct communication (QSDC) directly transmits confidential information over a quantum channel. In this context, it is important to take into account the multi-photon effect when using weak coherent laser pulses as the quantum source. Here we propose a multi-intensity QSDC (MI-QSDC) protocol where laser pulses having different intensities are used for secure communication in a fashion reminiscent of decoy states, where only signal intensity pulses are used for key exchange. Pulses of all intensities are used both for information transmission and eavesdropping detection in the MI-QSDC. The statistical fluctuations associated with practical finite block-length in QSDC are also considered and a tight secrecy capacity bound is given. The simulation results show that the proposed protocol is capable of communicating over a distance on the order of 100 km by relying on a finite block-length of sending 1014pulses.

Quantum phase estimation is an important component in diverse quantum algorithms. However, it suffers from spectral leakage, when the reciprocal of the record length is not an integer multiple of the unknown phase, which incurs an accuracy degradation. For the existing single-sample estimation scheme, window-based methods have been proposed for spectral leakage mitigation. As a further advance, we propose a dual-frequency estimator, which asymptotically approaches the Cramér-Rao bound, when multiple samples are available. Numerical results show that the proposed estimator outperforms the existing window-based methods, when the number of samples is sufficiently high.

Wavelet transform is being widely used in classical image processing. One-dimension quantum wavelet transforms (QWTs) have been proposed. Generalizations of the 1-D QWT into multilevel and multidimension have been investigated but restricted to the quantum wavelet packet transform (QWPTs), which is the direct product of 1-D QWPTs, and there is no transform between the packets in different dimensions. A 2-D QWT is vital for image processing. We construct the multilevel 2-D QWT's general theory. Explicitly, we built multilevel 2-D Haar QWT and the multilevel Daubechies D4 QWT, respectively. We have given the complete quantum circuits for these wavelet transforms, using both noniterative and iterative methods. Compared to the 1-D QWT and wavelet packet transform, the multilevel 2-D QWT involves the entanglement between components in different degrees. Complexity analysis reveals that the proposed transforms offer exponential speedup over their classical counterparts. Also, the proposed wavelet transforms are used to realize quantum image compression. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed wavelet transforms are significant and obtain the same results as their classical counterparts with an exponential speedup.

Seven decades after the foundation of classical information theory and the invention of the transistor that launched the digital communication and computing revolutions, we are entering a new era of quantum information science and engineering (QISE). Despite holding its impressive sway for nearly 60 years, the celebrated Moore’s law is beginning to hit physical limits, as the ever-shrinking transistor size is making it necessary to account for quantum effects. Concurrently, the growing demand for high-rate processing is imposing unsustainable power and heat dissipation requirements. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop quantum information processing systems that can circumvent the limitations of existing technology.

Quantum secure direct communication (QSDC) is capable of direct confidential communications over a quantum channel, which is achieved by dispensing with the key agreement channel of the well-known quantum key distribution (QKD). However, to make QSDC a practical reality, we have to mitigate its reliance on quantum memory, its immediate communication interruption caused by eavesdropping and its low transmission reliability due to the heavy qubit losses. Hence a new QSDC protocol is proposed based on a sophisticated coded single-photon DL04 QSDC protocol to tackle the open challenges. In particular, quantum memory is dispensed with and a high-accuracy secrecy capacity estimate is derived for this protocol by conceiving dynamic joint encryption and error-control (JEEC) coding. We demonstrate that this quantum-memory-free DL04 QSDC (QMF-DL04 QSDC) protocol inches closer to the quantum channel's capacity and significantly improves the original DL04 QSDC's robustness. Moreover, a rate-compatible low-rate JEEC coding scheme is designed for the proposed framework, and the JEEC code advocated is shown to approach the secrecy capacity, despite tolerating an extremely high loss of qubits in the time-varying wiretap channel. Our simulations and experimental results demonstrate that the QMF-DL04 QSDC scheme significantly increases both the secure information rate and the communication distance of the original DL04 protocol.

Quantum secure direct communication is one of the major branches of quantum cryptography. In quantum secure direct communication, secret information can be transmitted directly through a quantum channel without the use of a private key. Quantum secure direct communication(QSDC) offers higher security and instantaneousness in communication. Because it does not use private key, key management is dispensed with. Unlike quantum key distribution where key is transferred from quantum terminal to the classical terminal at the user's site, the coding operations are solely in the quantum terminal, it further provides security in the user's site. QSDC is also a powerful basic cryptographic primitive to build other quantum communication protocols, such as quantum bidding, quantum signature and quantum dialogue and so on. Here, we briefly introduce the basic ideas of QSDC, describe the major protocols, report current status, and give a perspective.

Solving systems of linear equations is important both in classical and quantum computing. Harrow-Hassidim-Lloyd algorithm (HHL algorithm), a quantum algorithm for solving systems of linear equations, has achieved exponentially improved performance compared with corresponding classical algorithm. We will show in this article that the HHL algorithm is actually a duality quantum algorithm with non- unitary transformation from initial to the final state. We present a detailed realization of the HHL algorithm in a duality quantum computing formalism that allows the construction of non- unitary operations. The divider structure, combinor structure, and the total quantum circuit for the HHL algorithm in the duality quantum computing formalism are given explicitly.