Practical continuous-variable quantum secret sharing using plug-and-play dual-phase modulation

Abstract

Continuous-variable quantum secret sharing (CVQSS) allows a legitimate user, i.e., the dealer, to share a string of secret keys with multiple distant users. These users cannot individually recover the dealer’s secret key unless they work cooperatively. Although the theoretical security proof of CVQSS has been well established, its practical security and implementation still face challenges. In this paper, we suggest a practical scheme for CVQSS using plug-and-play (P&P) configuration and dual-phase-modulated coherent state (DPMCS). The proposed scheme, called P&P DPM-based CVQSS, waives the necessity that each user has to prepare respective coherent states with their own lasers, thereby eliminating synchronous loopholes caused by different lasers and reducing the complexity of deployment of the user’s stations. Moreover, the local oscillator (LO) can be generated locally by the dealer so that the whole CVQSS system could be naturally immune to all LO-aimed attacks. We derive the security bounds for P&P DPM-based CVQSS by properly making most of the existing security analysis techniques of continuous-variable quantum key distribution (CVQKD). In addition, an experimental concept of P&P DPM-based CVQSS is also presented, which can be deemed a guideline for future implementation.