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Making an Empty Promise with a Quantum Computer
Author(s) -
Chau H.F.,
Lo HoiKwong
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
fortschritte der physik
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.469
H-Index - 71
eISSN - 1521-3978
pISSN - 0015-8208
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1521-3978(199806)46:4/5<507::aid-prop507>3.0.co;2-4
Subject(s) - computer science , quantum , quantum computer , physics , quantum mechanics
Alice has made a decision in her mind. While she does not want to reveal it to Bob at this moment, she would like to convince Bob that she is committed to this particular decision and that she cannot change it at a later time. Is there a way for Alice to get Bob's trust? Until recently, researchers had believed that the above task can be performed with the help of quantum mechanics. And the security of the quantum scheme lies on the uncertainty principle. Nevertheless, such optimism was recently shattered by Mayers and by us, who found that Alice can always change her mind if she has a quantum computer. Here, we survey this dramatic development and its implications on the security of other quantum cryptographic schemes. PACS numbers: 03.65.Bz, 89.70.+c, 89.80.+h