Dr.

Chuck Easttom
Quantum Computing and
Cybersecurity

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This Presentation

Defining quantum computing

Exploring the impact

Discussing current developments

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Concepts for Quantum Computing
• Superposition
• Wave Function
• Probabilistic
• Entanglement/Non-Locality

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Entanglement

Two coins illustrating quantum entanglement

[H][H] & [T][T]

1 1

0 0

0 0

0 0

1 1

1 1
What is a Qubit?

• 

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 Qubits

The Bloch sphere representation of a qubit

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Quantum Supremecy

• John Preskill coined the term quantum supremacy referring to a

quantum computer solving a particular problem that is either
unsolvable or extremely impractical to solve with a classical computer.
• October 2019 Google and NASA performed calculations using the
Sycamore quantum computer approximately 3 million times faster
than can be done on the fastest classical computer

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Branches of Quantum Computing

QKD Quantum
Computing

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Quantum Timeline

• 1994 Peter Shor’s algorithm

• In 1998 Los Alamos Laboratory and Massachusetts Institute of Technology propagated the first
qubit through a solution of amino acids
• The first two qubit machine was built by the University of California at Berkeley in 1998
• First five-photon entanglement demonstrated by Jian-Wei Pan's group at the University of
Science and Technology of China, the minimal number of qubits required for universal quantum
error correction in 2004.
• The Institute of Quantum Optics and Quantum Information at the University of Innsbruck in
Austria developed the first qubyte (8 qubits) system
• 2006 First 12 qubit quantum computer benchmarked by researchers at the Institute for Quantum
Computing and the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, as well as MIT,
Cambridge
• Yale University created the first quantum processor in 2009

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Quantum Timeline

• 2009 NIST demonstrates multiple computing operations on qubits

• 2011 D-Wave claims to have developed quantum annealing and introduces their product called D-Wave One.
The company claims this is the first commercially available quantum computer
• 2012 D-Wave claims a quantum computation using 84 qubits
• 2012 Decoherence suppressed for 2 seconds at room temperature by manipulating Carbon-13 atoms with
lasers
• 2014 Scientists transfer data by quantum teleportation over a distance of 10 feet (3.048 meters) with zero
percent error rate
• 2015 D-Wave Systems Inc. announced on 22 June that it had broken the 1000 qubit barrier
• 2017 IBM unveils 17-qubit quantum computer
• 2017 IBM reveals a working 50-qubit quantum computer that can maintain its quantum state for 90
microseconds
• 2018 Google announced the creation of a 72-qubit quantum chip called "Bristlecone“
• 2018 Intel confirms development of a 49-qubit superconducting test chip, called "Tangle Lake"

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Quantum Timeline

• October 2018 D-Wave launches free Quantum Computing Cloud

https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/computing/hardware/dwave-launches-free-quantum-cloud-service
• 2019 IBM unveils its first commercial quantum computer, the IBM Q System One. It is a 20 qubit
system that has a self-contained package and can be moved. The container is a Faraday cage.
• IBM also has an open-source quantum algorithm kit https://qiskit.org/
• January 2021 Chinese researchers report that they have built the world's largest integrated quantum
communication network, using over 700 optical fibers with two QKD-ground-to-satellite links for a total
distance between nodes of networks of about 4,600 km
• 7 July 2021 – Researchers present a programmable quantum simulator that can operate with 256 qubits
• 25 October 2021: Chinese researchers have developed the Jiuzhang 2 66 qubit programmable photon-
based quantum computer and used it to solve a task 1024 times as fast as classical computers. The
problem solved was rather obscure, it involves Gaussian boson sampling (GBS), a classical simulation
algorithm . Zuchongzi and Jiuzhang 2.0 are currently China's two leading quantum computers.

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Time Crystal

Researchers using Google’s Sycamore quantum computer, verified their

theoretical vision of a ‘time crystal’. Crystals are made up of repeating units
of atoms. A time crystal is a change that repeats through a system. Put more
formally: a time crystal is a quantum system of particles whose lowest
energy state is actually one in which the particles are in repetitive motion.
Because this is the systems quantum ground state, it cannot lose energy and
come to rest. These were first posited as theoretical constructs in 2012 by
Nobel Laurate Dr. Frank Wilczek of MIT

https://www.sciencealert.com/physicists-used-a-quantum-computer-to-show-
their-time-crystal-design-is-the-real-deal

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Quantum Comptuing Developments

• Multiple IEEE standards groups

• P1913 - Software-Defined Quantum Communication
• P7130 - Standard for Quantum Computing Definitions
• P7131 - Standard for Quantum Computing Performance Metrics &
Performance Benchmarking
• IEEE P2995 - Quantum Algorithm Design and Development Working Group
• IEEEE P3120 - Quantum Computing Architecture Working Group
• IEEE P3155 QuSIM/WG - Programmable Quantum Simulator Working Group

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Decoherence

Theoretically, a quantum system could maintain coherence indefinitely if it were completely

isolated from the external environment; however, no system is perfectly isolated from its
environment. It has even been demonstrated that cosmic rays and background environmental
radiation can contribute to decoherence in quantum computers. Even entanglements can occur
between the quantum computing system and its environment.

In addition to the external environment, the system itself can be an issue. For example, the
physical equipment needed for things like implementing quantum gates, is constructed of
atoms and particles that have quantum properties. In general, many systems are only able to
maintain coherence for a matter of microseconds to a few seconds

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Decoherence

One method used to help combat decoherence is super cooling to just a

fraction of one Kelvin. In fact, some systems cool to a few nanokelvins.
If you are not familiar, or don't recall the Kelvin scale, 0 Kelvin is the
equivalent to -273.15 Celsius or -459.67 Fahrenheit. This is not
arbitrary. The point 0 Kelvin is absolute zero, which implies no thermal
energy at all. Thus, nanokelvins are literally a fraction of a degree above
absolute zero. To provide some context, temperatures in space are often
around 2.7 Kelvin. Obviously, proximity to heat sources such as stars
can alter that. The surface of Pluto plummets to about 40 Kelvin. So,
quantum computing relies on temperatures that are much colder than
Pluto, and even colder than deep space.

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Decoherence

• Helium-3 has a boiling point of 3.19 K

• Helium-4 has a boiling point of 4.214 K
• Liquid Helium is commonly used

Intel uses cryogen-free dilution refrigerator systems from specialist Blufors (A Finnish
company specializing in supercooling). This works in stages cooling more at each stage.
They use a mixture of Helium isotopes as the refrigerant.

January 2021 Google has a cryogenic control circuit that operates at 4 K.

2020 IBM is developing a refrigerator named GoldenEye that can reach temperatures of
around 15 milli-kelvins. The device is 10' tall and 6' wide.

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Quantum Threshold

Also referred to as the quantum fault-tolerance theorem states that a

quantum computer with a physical error rate below a particular
threshold can suppress the logical error rate to arbitrarily low levels
using quantum error correction. Put another way: if the physical qubits
can keep error below a given level, the error correction algorithms can
take it the rest of the way.

There is some debate on what that threshold his, but at least down to 1%
and some say 0.1%

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Physical Implementations

• Electron on Helium
• Photons
• Trapped Ion
• Bose Einstein Condensate
• Diamond Nitrogen Vacancy Defect

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Shor’s Algorithm

Peter Shor developed Shor's algorithm. On a quantum computer it can

factor an integer N in polynomial time (actual time is log N). This is
substantially faster than the most efficient known classical factoring
algorithm (the general number field sieve) which works in sub-
exponential time.

Peter Shor was awarded the Gödel Prize of the ACM and a MacArthur
Foundation Fellowship in 1999

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Quantum and Cybersecurity

RSA – Factoring
DH – Discrete Logarithm
ECC - The discrete logarithm problem with respect to an elliptic curve.

Quantum computers can solve these problems in practical time.

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Quantum Computing and Cryptocurrency

Quantum computing also poses a problem for cryptocurrency.

Cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, Dogecoin, etc.) depend on asymmetric
cryptography to determine ownership. There are multiple approaches
being considered to address this issue. I have in fact published a paper
in an IEEE conference on this issue.

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Post Quantum Cryptography - NIST

Post quantum cryptography standards working group.

NIST has initiated a process to solicit, evaluate, and standardize one or more quantum-resistant public-key cryptographic
algorithms. Full details can be found in the Post-Quantum Cryptography Standardization page.
The submission deadline of November 30, 2017 has passed. Please see the Round 1 Submissions for the listing of complete and
proper submissions.
• In recent years, there has been a substantial amount of research on quantum computers – machines that exploit quantum
mechanical phenomena to solve mathematical problems that are difficult or intractable for conventional computers. If large-scale
quantum computers are ever built, they will be able to break many of the public-key cryptosystems currently in use. This would
seriously compromise the confidentiality and integrity of digital communications on the Internet and elsewhere.  The goal of
post-quantum cryptography (also called quantum-resistant cryptography) is to develop cryptographic systems that are secure
against both quantum and classical computers, and can interoperate with existing communications protocols and networks. 
• The question of when a large-scale quantum computer will be built is a complicated one. While in the past it was less clear that
large quantum computers are a physical possibility, many scientists now believe it to be merely a significant engineering
challenge. Some engineers even predict that within the next twenty or so years sufficiently large quantum computers will be built
to break essentially all public key schemes currently in use. Historically, it has taken almost two decades to deploy our modern
public key cryptography infrastructure.  Therefore, regardless of whether we can estimate the exact time of the arrival of the
quantum computing era, we must begin now to prepare our information security systems to be able to resist quantum computing.

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Post Quantum Cryptography - NIST

Asymmetric Cryptography
• Classic McEliece Alternate Public Key
• CRYSTALS-KYBER  BIKE
• NTRU  FrodoKEM
• SABER  HQC
 NTRU Prime
Digital Signature  SIKE
• CRYSTALS-DILITHIUM
• FALCON Alternate Digital Signature
• Rainbow  GeMSS
 Picnic
 SPHINCS+

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Post Quantum Cryptography - NIST

• NIST has selected algorithms to be standardized

• CRYSTALS-KYBER for Public-key Encryption and Key-establishment
Algorithms
• CRYSTALS-DILITHIUM for Digital Signatures
• FALCON for Digital Signatures
• SPHINCS+ for Digital Signatures

• For more on CRYSTALS-KYBER

• https://pq-crystals.org/kyber/

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Quantum computing and searching

• Grovers algorithm

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Quantum Computing and Machine Learning

• Quantum-enhanced machine learning refers to quantum algorithms that solve

tasks in machine learning
• The term "quantum machine learning" is often associated with classical machine
learning methods applied to data generated from quantum experiments.
• This includes hybrid methods that involve both classical and quantum processing,
where computationally difficult subroutines are outsourced to a quantum device.
• Quantum analogues of classical neural nets are often referred to as quantum
neural networks.
• Hidden Quantum Markov Models (HQMMs) are a quantum-enhanced version of
classical Hidden Markov Models (HMMs), which are typically used to model
sequential data in various fields like robotics and natural language processing.

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Questions

Questions??

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