Experimental demonstration of four-party quantum secret sharing

Secure quantum secret sharing without signal disturbance monitoring

Quantum secret sharing (QSS) is an essential primitive for the future quantum internet, which promises secure multiparty communication. However, developing a large-scale QSS network is a huge challenge due to the channel loss and the requirement of multiphoton interference or high-fidelity multipartite entanglement distribution. Here, we propose a three-user QSS protocol without monitoring signal disturbance, which is capable of ensuring the unconditional security. The final key rate of our protocol can be demonstrated to break the Pirandola-Laurenza-Ottaviani-Banchi bound of quantum channel and its simulated transmission distance can approach over 600 km using current techniques. Our results pave the way to realizing high-rate and large-scale QSS networks.

Differential Phase Shift Quantum Secret Sharing Using a Twin Field with Asymmetric Source Intensities

As an essential application of quantum mechanics in classical cryptography, quantum secret sharing has become an indispensable component of quantum internet. Recently, a differential phase shift quantum secret sharing protocol using a twin field has been proposed to break the linear rate-distance boundary. However, this original protocol has a poor performance over channels with asymmetric transmittances. To make it more practical, we present a differential phase shift quantum secret sharing protocol with asymmetric source intensities and give the security proof of our protocol against individual attacks. Taking finite-key effects into account, our asymmetric protocol can theoretically obtain the key rate two orders of magnitude higher than that of the original protocol when the difference in length between Alice's channel and Bob's is fixed at 14 km. Moreover, our protocol can provide a high key rate even when the difference is quite large and has great robustness against finite-key effects. Therefore, our work is meaningful for the real-life applications of quantum secret sharing.

Differential phase shift quantum secret sharing using a twin field

Quantum secret sharing (QSS) is essential for multiparty quantum communication, which is one of cornerstones in the future quantum internet. However, a linear rate-distance limitation severely constrains the secure key rate and transmission distance of QSS. Here, we present a practical QSS protocol among three participants based on the differential phase shift scheme and twin field ideas for the solution of high-efficiency multiparty communication task. In contrast to a formerly proposed differential phase shift QSS protocol, our protocol can break the linear rate-distance bound, theoretically improving the secret key rate by three orders of magnitude in a 300-km-long fiber. Furthermore, the new protocol is secure against Trojan horse attacks that cannot be resisted by previous differential phase shift QSS.

Quantum Teleportation of Shared Quantum Secret

Quantum teleportation is a fundamental building block of quantum communications and quantum computations, transferring quantum states between distant physical entities. In the context of quantum secret sharing, the teleportation of quantum information shared by multiple parties without concentrating the information at any place is essential, and this cannot be realized by any previous scheme. We propose and experimentally demonstrate a novel teleportation protocol that enables one to perform this task. It is jointly performed by distributed participants, while none of them can fully access the information. Our scheme can be extended to arbitrary numbers of senders and receivers and to fault-tolerant quantum networks by incorporating error-correction codes.

Genuine tripartite Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen steering in the cascaded nonlinear processes of third-harmonic generation

Recently, Einstein-Podolski-Rosen (EPR) steering has important application in quantum information processing, and it has been received considerable attention because of its uniqueness. The properties of quantum steering among three output fields generated by cascaded nonlinear processes of quasi-phase-matching third-harmonic generation in an optical cavity are investigated. Based on the criteria for multipartite EPR steering which proposed by He and Reid [PRL, 111, 250403 (2013)], the genuine tripartite EPR steering among pump, second-harmonic, and third-harmonic is demonstrated. The parameters which affect the quantum property are also discussed.

Quantum Secret Sharing Among Four Players Using Multipartite Bound Entanglement of an Optical Field

Secret sharing is a conventional technique for realizing secure communications in information networks, where a dealer distributes to n players a secret, which can only be decoded through the cooperation of k (n/2<k≤n) players. In recent years, quantum resources have been employed to enhance security of secret sharing, which has been named quantum secret sharing (QSS). A multipartite bound entanglement (BE) state of an optical field, due to its special entanglement features, can be used in quantum networks to improve security and flexibility of communication. We design and experimentally demonstrate a QSS protocol, where the dealer modulates a secret on a four-partite BE state and then distributes the submodes of the BE state to four spatially separated players. The presented QSS scheme has the capability to protect secrets from eavesdropping and dishonest players, because a nonlocal and deterministic BE state is shared among four authorized players.

A solid state source of photon triplets based on quantum dot molecules

Producing advanced quantum states of light is a priority in quantum information technologies. In this context, experimental realizations of multipartite photon states would enable improved tests of the foundations of quantum mechanics as well as implementations of complex quantum optical networks and protocols. It is favourable to directly generate these states using solid state systems, for simpler handling and the promise of reversible transfer of quantum information between stationary and flying qubits. Here we use the ground states of two optically active coupled quantum dots to directly produce photon triplets. The formation of a triexciton in these ground states leads to a triple cascade recombination and sequential emission of three photons with strong correlations. We record 65.62 photon triplets per minute under continuous-wave pumping, surpassing rates of earlier reported sources. Our structure and data pave the way towards implementing multipartite photon entanglement and multi-qubit readout schemes in solid state devices.

Multipartite photon states are desirable in quantum information technology but their generation in optical systems is less efficient with poor scaling. Here the authors demonstrate time-ordered photon triplets from a quantum dot molecule in a direct generation process with increased efficiency.

Secret Sharing of a Quantum State

Secret sharing of a quantum state, or quantum secret sharing, in which a dealer wants to share a certain amount of quantum information with a few players, has wide applications in quantum information. The critical criterion in a threshold secret sharing scheme is confidentiality: with less than the designated number of players, no information can be recovered. Furthermore, in a quantum scenario, one additional critical criterion exists: the capability of sharing entangled and unknown quantum information. Here, by employing a six-photon entangled state, we demonstrate a quantum threshold scheme, where the shared quantum secrecy can be efficiently reconstructed with a state fidelity as high as 93%. By observing that any one or two parties cannot recover the secrecy, we show that our scheme meets the confidentiality criterion. Meanwhile, we also demonstrate that entangled quantum information can be shared and recovered via our setting, which shows that our implemented scheme is fully quantum. Moreover, our experimental setup can be treated as a decoding circuit of the five-qubit quantum error-correcting code with two erasure errors.

Biased decoy-state measurement-device-independent quantum cryptographic conferencing with finite resources

In recent years, a large quantity of work have been done to narrow the gap between theory and practice in quantum key distribution (QKD). However, most of them are focus on two-party protocols. Very recently, Yao Fu et al proposed a measurement-device-independent quantum cryptographic conferencing (MDI-QCC) protocol and proved its security in the limit of infinitely long keys. As a step towards practical application for MDI-QCC, we design a biased decoy-state measurement-device-independent quantum cryptographic conferencing protocol and analyze the performance of the protocol in both the finite-key and infinite-key regime. From numerical simulations, we show that our decoy-state analysis is tighter than Yao Fu et al. That is, we can achieve the nonzero asymptotic secret key rate in long distance with approximate to 200km and we also demonstrate that with a finite size of data (say 10¹¹ to 10¹³ signals) it is possible to perform secure MDI-QCC over reasonable distances.

Long-distance measurement-device-independent multiparty quantum communication

The Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger (GHZ) entanglement, originally introduced to uncover the extreme violation of local realism against quantum mechanics, is an important resource for multiparty quantum communication tasks. But the low intensity and fragility of the GHZ entanglement source in current conditions have made the practical applications of these multiparty tasks an experimental challenge. Here we propose a feasible scheme for practically distributing the postselected GHZ entanglement over a distance of more than 100 km for experimentally accessible parameter regimes. Combining the decoy-state and measurement-device-independent protocols for quantum key distribution, we anticipate that our proposal suggests an important avenue for practical multiparty quantum communication.

Genuine multipartite Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen steering

We develop the concept of genuine N-partite Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen (EPR) steering. This nonlocality is the natural multipartite extension of the original EPR paradox. Useful properties emerge that are not guaranteed for genuine multipartite entangled states. In particular, there is a close link with the task of one-sided, device-independent quantum secret sharing. We derive inequalities to demonstrate multipartite EPR steering for Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger and Gaussian continuous variable states in loophole-free scenarios.

Experimental single qubit quantum secret sharing in a fiber network configuration

We present a robust single-photon quantum secret sharing (QSS) scheme with phase encoding in three-party implementations and a design way of more parties over a 50 km single-mode fiber network using a single QSS protocol. This scheme automatically provides perfect compensation for birefringence. A high visibility of 99.4% is obtained over three hours in visibility and stability measurements without any system adjustments, showing good potential for practical systems. Furthermore, polarization-insensitive phase modulators are realized using this system.

Experimental circular quantum secret sharing over telecom fiber network

We present a robust single photon circular quantum secret sharing (QSS) scheme with phase encoding over 50 km single mode fiber network using a circular QSS protocol. Our scheme can automatically provide a perfect compensation of birefringence and remain stable for a long time. A high visibility of 99.3% is obtained. Furthermore, our scheme realizes a polarization insensitive phase modulators. The visibility of this system can be maintained perpetually without any adjustment to the system every time we test the system.

Experimental test of fidelity limits in six-photon interferometry and of rotational invariance properties of the photonic six-qubit entanglement singlet state

Quantum multiphoton interferometry has now reached the six-photon stage. Thus far, the observed fidelities of entangled states never reached 2/3. We report a high fidelity (estimated at 88%) experiment in which six-qubit singlet correlations were observed. With such a high fidelity we are able to demonstrate the central property of these "singlet" correlations, their "rotational invariance," by performing a full set of measurements in three complementary polarization bases. The patterns are almost indistinguishable. The data reveal genuine six-photon entanglement. We also study several five-photon states, which result upon detection of one of the photons. Multiphoton singlet states survive some types of depolarization and are thus important in quantum communication schemes.

Experimental realization of Dicke states of up to six qubits for multiparty quantum networking

We report the first experimental generation and characterization of a six-photon Dicke state. The produced state shows a fidelity of F=0.56+/-0.02 with respect to an ideal Dicke state and violates a witness detecting genuine six-qubit entanglement by 4 standard deviations. We confirm characteristic Dicke properties of our resource and demonstrate its versatility by projecting out four- and five-photon Dicke states, as well as four-photon Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger and W states. We also show that Dicke states have interesting applications in multiparty quantum networking protocols such as open-destination teleportation, telecloning, and quantum secret sharing.

Discriminating multipartite entangled states

The variety of multipartite entangled states enables numerous applications in novel quantum information tasks. In order to compare the suitability of different states from a theoretical point of view, classifications have been introduced. Accordingly, here we derive criteria and demonstrate how to experimentally discriminate an observed state against the ones of certain other classes of multipartite entangled states. Our method, originating in Bell inequalities, adds an important tool for the characterization of multiparty entanglement.