Practical semi-quantum key distribution with one-way key and one basis

Abstract

Semi-quantum key distribution (SQKD) protocols are used to distribute secret keys between a quantum party and a classical party. However, existing SQKD protocols rely on two-way communication, and may still be vulnerable to Trojan horse side-channel attacks where Eve sends her own photon into a receiver’s apparatus and measures the reflected photon to estimate the key. In this paper, we propose a practical SQKD with one-way key. This requires that the single photons travelling through the one-way channel are used to encode bit information, and the returned photons are used to quantify Eve’s information, thus reducing the security analysis of the Trojan horse attack in SQKD. Meanwhile, our protocol with one basis enjoys security advantage in practical SQKD systems when source flaws are taken into account. In particular, the present protocol is secure under practical conditions when weak coherent pulses (WCP) are used. Our simulation results show that the protocol using WCP can distribute secret keys over a distance of 110 km without decoy states.