Enregistré dans:
Détails bibliographiques
Auteurs principaux: Laurent-Puig, Nicolas, Doosti, Mina, Innocenzi, Adriano, Diamanti, Eleni
Format: Preprint
Publié: 2026
Sujets:
Accès en ligne:https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.04650
Tags: Ajouter un tag
Pas de tags, Soyez le premier à ajouter un tag!
_version_ 1866914534212501504
author Laurent-Puig, Nicolas
Doosti, Mina
Innocenzi, Adriano
Diamanti, Eleni
author_facet Laurent-Puig, Nicolas
Doosti, Mina
Innocenzi, Adriano
Diamanti, Eleni
contents Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) enables Information-Theoretically Secure (ITS) key exchange, robust even against future quantum computing threats. However, a fundamental limitation of QKD is the requirement for an authenticated classical channel, which necessitates a pre-shared secret key. In this work, we address this challenge by adopting a Hybrid Entangled Physical Unclonable Function (PUF) protocol for authentication. We demonstrate that this PUF-based method generates an ITS initial key under minimal explicit hardware assumptions. This approach allows us to experimentally perform a fully ITS-authenticated entanglement-based QKD protocol that relies solely on such assumptions, effectively eliminating the need for pre-shared secrets. This represents a significant step towards the practical realization of quantum network protocols using lightweight, readily available hardware assumptions, without weakening security guarantees.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2605_04650
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Unconditional Authentication in Quantum Key Distribution via Hybrid Entangled Physical Unclonable Functions
Laurent-Puig, Nicolas
Doosti, Mina
Innocenzi, Adriano
Diamanti, Eleni
Quantum Physics
Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) enables Information-Theoretically Secure (ITS) key exchange, robust even against future quantum computing threats. However, a fundamental limitation of QKD is the requirement for an authenticated classical channel, which necessitates a pre-shared secret key. In this work, we address this challenge by adopting a Hybrid Entangled Physical Unclonable Function (PUF) protocol for authentication. We demonstrate that this PUF-based method generates an ITS initial key under minimal explicit hardware assumptions. This approach allows us to experimentally perform a fully ITS-authenticated entanglement-based QKD protocol that relies solely on such assumptions, effectively eliminating the need for pre-shared secrets. This represents a significant step towards the practical realization of quantum network protocols using lightweight, readily available hardware assumptions, without weakening security guarantees.
title Unconditional Authentication in Quantum Key Distribution via Hybrid Entangled Physical Unclonable Functions
topic Quantum Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.04650