Quantum Internet

[American_Jihad]

Government Lab Reveals It Has Operated Quantum Internet for Over Two Years

A quantum internet capable of sending perfectly secure messages has been running at Los Alamos National Labs for the last two and a half years, say researchers

The Physics arXiv Blog
May 6, 2013

One of the dreams for security experts is the creation of a quantum internet that allows perfectly secure communication based on the powerful laws of quantum mechanics.

The basic idea here is that the act of measuring a quantum object, such as a photon, always changes it. So any attempt to eavesdrop on a quantum message cannot fail to leave telltale signs of snooping that the receiver can detect. That allows anybody to send a “one-time pad” over a quantum network which can then be used for secure communication using conventional classical communication.

That sets things up nicely for perfectly secure messaging known as quantum cryptography and this is actually a fairly straightforward technique for any half decent quantum optics lab. Indeed, a company called ID Quantique sells an off-the-shelf system that has begun to attract banks and other organisations interested in perfect security.

...

Having run this system now for over two years, Los Alamos are now highly confident in its efficacy.

Of course, the network can never be more secure than the hub at the middle of it and this is an important limitation of this approach. By contrast, a pure quantum internet should allow perfectly secure communication from any point in the network to any other.

Another is that this approach will become obsolete as soon as quantum routers become commercially viable. So the question for any investors is whether they can get their money back in the time before then. The odds are that they won’t have to wait long to find out.

Government Lab Reveals It Has Operated Quantum Internet For Over Two Years | MIT Technology Review

 

[waltky]

The pros and cons of superfast computing in the finance world...

Quantum computing: Game changer or security threat?
Mon, 04 Apr 2016 - Superfast quantum computers could transform the world of finance, advocates say.

In a world where how fast you can assimilate and analyse data then act on it, makes the difference between profit and loss, computing speed is key. This is why banks, insurance firms, and hedge funds invest millions on technology to give them an edge when trading, and to offset human error. Quantum computers, that owe more to nuclear quantum mechanics than electronics, promise to be exponentially more powerful than traditional computers, holding out the tantalising prospect of near-perfect trading strategies and highly accurate forecasting and risk assessments. "Financial services is a data-rich environment," says Kevin Hanley, director of design at the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). "Time is money and the ability to process data fast could have a huge potential benefit for our customers."

Quantum computing in a nutshell

Classical computing relies on binary digits or bits - ones and zeros representing on/off, true/false states. Quantum computing, on the other hand, features qubits, which can be both 0 or 1 at the same time - a state known as superposition. It all goes back to Schrodinger's cat, but that's another story.... Atomic particles such as electrons, photons or ions can be made to behave in this mysterious way. And because of this flexibility, qubits can do a lot more - a quantum computer could theoretically carry out trillions of calculations per second. But these computers aren't easy to build or operate. Quantum processors from one of the leading manufacturers in this field - D-Wave - need to be cooled to just above absolute zero (-273.15C). They also need to be free from any electromagnetic interference.

This makes them bulky and costly; D-Wave's computers cost about $10m-15m. Ironically they're also a bit limited in the kinds of calculations they can currently do, and many observers are still sceptical about how fast they really are. So it's fair to say we're still at the very early stages of quantum computing. Goldman Sachs, RBS, Guggenheim Partners and Commonwealth Bank of Australia have all invested in quantum computing, with the aim of stealing a march on their competitors. "This is interesting to the financial world because if you can find an algorithmic advantage to solve a problem, that can give you a great competitive advantage," says Colin Williams, director of business development for D-Wave.

Google, Nasa, Lockheed Martin, the US Department of Energy and the University of Southern California have all used D-Wave's systems so far. Other tech companies, such as Cambridge Quantum Computing, QxBranch and Rigetti, are also rushing to develop the hardware and software needed to make quantum computing a reality.

Longer-term visibility

 

[KissMy]

 

[esalla]

Government Lab Reveals It Has Operated Quantum Internet for Over Two Years

A quantum internet capable of sending perfectly secure messages has been running at Los Alamos National Labs for the last two and a half years, say researchers

The Physics arXiv Blog
May 6, 2013

One of the dreams for security experts is the creation of a quantum internet that allows perfectly secure communication based on the powerful laws of quantum mechanics.

The basic idea here is that the act of measuring a quantum object, such as a photon, always changes it. So any attempt to eavesdrop on a quantum message cannot fail to leave telltale signs of snooping that the receiver can detect. That allows anybody to send a one-time pad over a quantum network which can then be used for secure communication using conventional classical communication.

That sets things up nicely for perfectly secure messaging known as quantum cryptography and this is actually a fairly straightforward technique for any half decent quantum optics lab. Indeed, a company called ID Quantique sells an off-the-shelf system that has begun to attract banks and other organisations interested in perfect security.

...

Having run this system now for over two years, Los Alamos are now highly confident in its efficacy.

Of course, the network can never be more secure than the hub at the middle of it and this is an important limitation of this approach. By contrast, a pure quantum internet should allow perfectly secure communication from any point in the network to any other.

Another is that this approach will become obsolete as soon as quantum routers become commercially viable. So the question for any investors is whether they can get their money back in the time before then. The odds are that they wont have to wait long to find out.

Government Lab Reveals It Has Operated Quantum Internet For Over Two Years | MIT Technology Review

A government lab can not have an internet, perhaps a local area network, however since your link goes no where its bs