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Quantum entropy source on an integrated circuit for random number generation

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Re: Quantum entropy source on an integrated circuit for random number generation

#11
It always makes me a little bit sad when people get excited about about fancy "quantum" things that don't use the full potential of quantum computation.

With classical computing, if you plug in a widget and that widget spits out a bunch of supposedly random numbers, then you have to take it on faith that the widget isn't cheating and generating highly biased output. (For example, a deterministic cryptographic RNG is almost maximally biased, but it's computationally infeasible to tell just by examining the output.)

With quantum techniques, if you are willing to plug in two devices and process their outputs a bit, and if you're willing to trust that the devices aren't secretly communicating, then you can get provable randomness. You don't even need a real quantum computer to do this. [1] You still need to trust that the devices aren't actively malicious, but you do rule out accidental implementation issues that introduce subtle correlations between output bits.

If you are using an actual quantum computer, then you can go much farther and generate uniform random bits directly and even, under certain straightforward conditions, prove that those bits didn't leak out via a side channel. This is more or less the same principle as quantum key distribution: if Alice and Bob run a QKD algorithm to generate a key (n uniform, independent random bits), they are effectively running a protocol that verifies that no side channel leaked the bits. A malicious eavesdropper is a form of side channel, so those get ruled out as well.

[1] https://arxiv.org/abs/0911.3427

Re: Quantum entropy source on an integrated circuit for random number generation

#12
post #11

It always makes me a little bit sad when people get excited about about fancy "quantum" things that don't use the full potential of quantum computation. With classical computing, if you plug in a widget and that widget spits out a bunch of supposedly random numbers, then you have to take it on faith that the widget isn't cheating and generating highly biased output. (For example, a deterministic cryptographic RNG is…

[1] turns out to be more subtle than people originally thought. Even assuming you can make loophole free bell tests (hey, it's been done!), the best anyone has been able to show this does -- even theoretically -- is randomness /amplification/ not true verifiable randomness. This boils down to the need for an initial random basis preparation of the qubits for which you have no true random seed.

I know some people have been working on solving that chicken and egg problem, but -- unless there's very new work I'm unaware of -- it's still unsolved.

Re: Quantum entropy source on an integrated circuit for random number generation

#13
post #10
post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

About the half serious part, I don't think that an entangled RNG could transmit any information.

ever since the Chinese published that they can now use entanglent to transmit information faster than light. following it up with that quantum comms satelite recently im not sure what to think anymore. surely a better answer is "we dont actually know anymore" https://www.technologyreview.com/s/601658/first-demonstratio...

Your summation is not true; all they've claimed to have done is create a quantum encryption link, which means that if someone tries to eavesdrop on it, it will garble the message for both recipients.

There is no FTL communication.

Re: Quantum entropy source on an integrated circuit for random number generation

#14
post #13
post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

ever since the Chinese published that they can now use entanglent to transmit information faster than light. following it up with that quantum comms satelite recently im not sure what to think anymore. surely a better answer is "we dont actually know anymore" https://www.technologyreview.com/s/601658/first-demonstratio...

Your summation is not true; all they've claimed to have done is create a quantum encryption link, which means that if someone tries to eavesdrop on it, it will garble the message for both recipients. There is no FTL communication.

thats isnt how the project was billed.

the first part of the project is quantum encryption. the second is ftl communication https://www.rt.com/news/328988-china-quantum-info-teleport/

The satellite’s first mission would involve establishing a cryptographic communication line between Beijing and Vienna by creating “[the encoding and sharing of a secret cryptographic key using the quantum properties of photons] between a ground station in Beijing and the satellite, and between the satellite and Vienna.”

Scientists then plan to conduct satellite entangled photon quantum teleportation between stations located in the Chinese cities of Delingha and Lijiang or Nanshan, which are separated by more than 1,200 kilometers.

____

following the ftl publications in 2013 Spooky! Quantum Action Is 10,000 Times Faster Than Light http://www.livescience.com/27920-quantum-action-faster-than-...

Re: Quantum entropy source on an integrated circuit for random number generation

#15
post #11

It always makes me a little bit sad when people get excited about about fancy "quantum" things that don't use the full potential of quantum computation. With classical computing, if you plug in a widget and that widget spits out a bunch of supposedly random numbers, then you have to take it on faith that the widget isn't cheating and generating highly biased output. (For example, a deterministic cryptographic RNG is…

[1] turns out to be more subtle than people originally thought. Even assuming you can make loophole free bell tests (hey, it's been done!), the best anyone has been able to show this does -- even theoretically -- is randomness /amplification/ not true verifiable randomness. This boils down to the need for an initial random basis preparation of the qubits for which you have no true random seed. I know some people have…

Do you have a reference for that? I'm curious what the problem is.
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