A team of researchers at National Tsing Hua University (NTHU) yesterday unveiled a new cryptographic technique using quantum technology, saying that they have used it to transmit an encrypted message outside of a laboratory setting.
The team in September sent encryption keys from their university to a recipient at National Chiao Tung University via a 4km fiber-optic cable, NTHU department of physics associate professor Chuu Chih-sung (褚志崧) told a news conference at the Ministry of Science and Technology in Taipei.
The researchers used pulsed laser light to produce photons — the smallest measurable unit of light — on which they encoded binary code, he said.
Photo: Chien Hui-ju, Taipei Times
The technique, which is based on a theory of differential phase shift quantum key distribution introduced by Stanford University researchers in 2002, frustrates any hacker’s attempt to steal the code, Chuu said.
As the system tolerates an error rate of up to 2.5 percent when there is no “eavesdropper” trying to steal the code, it can detect any theft attempt as the error rate would exceed 2.5 percent, he said.
While the US, China and other countries have conducted similar experiments at various distances, the NTHU team is the first in Taiwan to transmit encrypted keys using quantum communication in a real-world environment, Chuu said.
The team next plans to experiment using the technique to transmit encrypted keys up to 10km to the Industrial Technology Research Institute, he said.
Compared with contemporary cryptography, whose encrypted messages can be deciphered by supercomputers with “faster” computing capabilities, the quantum key distribution technique makes the formulas of keys more irregular, increasing the challenges for hackers, department distinguished professor Mou Chung-yu (牟中瑜) said.
The technique would be most applicable to the financial and national security sectors, Mou said.
As semiconductor manufacturing techniques have been pushed almost to their extremes, quantum computing, widely considered to be the next significant technological revolution, is one of the ministry’s priority areas when allocating funds, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Shieh Dar-bin (謝達斌) said.
The ministry last year provided funding for NTHU to establish the Center for Quantum Technology and is glad to see that researchers have produced preliminary results, Shieh said, adding that he expects the team’s technique to be applied to communication at longer ranges.
SEA WARNING LIKELY: The storm, named Gaemi, could become a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, with the Taipei City Government preparing for flooding A tropical depression east of the Philippines developed into a tropical storm named Gaemi at 2pm yesterday, and was moving toward eastern Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Gaemi could begin to affect Taiwan proper on Tuesday, lasting until Friday, and could develop into a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, it said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued as early as Tuesday morning, it added. Gaemi, the third tropical storm in the Pacific Ocean this typhoon season, is projected to begin moving northwest today, and be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday, the agency said. Today, there would likely
CHIPS AND DEFENSE: Trump said the US had lost its chip business and Taipei should pay it for defense, and added that ‘we’re no different than an insurance company’ Taiwan-US relations are solid, and both sides are in agreement that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region are everyone’s concern, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday following comments by former US president Donald Trump that Taiwan “should pay” for US defense. Taiwan is thankful to the US for supporting Taiwan’s bid to participate in international organizations, Cho told a news conference in Taipei. “I know the people very well, respect them greatly. They did take about 100 percent of our chip business,” Trump told Bloomberg on June 25 in an interview that was published on Tuesday. “I think
SHOW OF SUPPORT: Taiwan has been one of the largest buyers of US defense equipment, supporting American businesses and jobs, US lawmakers said Taiwan has been paying for its own defense, a US Department of State official said on Wednesday, adding that purchases of military equipment are important to the US economy and for ensuring regional security. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller was asked at a news conference about comments by former US president Donald Trump, the Republican nominee in November’s US presidential election, who said during an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek that Taiwan should pay Washington for its defense needs. “The purchases that they [Taiwan] have made not only are important, we believe, to regional security, but are important to the United States economy,”
END OF SESSION: Other changes that passed involved the removal of restrictions on group tours to China and raising the sentence for people found guilty of child abuse Legislators yesterday passed the third reading of amendments to Article 49 of the Electricity Act (電業法), which stipulate that at least half of the electricity price evaluation committee should be made up of civilian representatives, and a resolution to invite President William Lai (賴清德) to present a state of the nation address at the Legislative Yuan. They also passed a motion proposed by the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) that the government remove restrictions on group tours to China. On the last day of this year’s first legislative session, the legislators attempted to deal with dozens of bills