12 Jan 1999 | Richard Cleve, Daniel Gottesman, Hoi-Kwong Lo
This paper investigates quantum secret sharing, a method to distribute a quantum state among multiple parties such that any k of them can reconstruct the secret, but any k-1 or fewer cannot gain any information about it. The key constraint is the quantum no-cloning theorem, which requires that n < 2k for a ((k,n)) threshold scheme to exist. The paper presents an efficient construction for such schemes and explores their similarities and differences with quantum error-correcting codes. A notable difference is that quantum secret sharing schemes often use mixed states, unlike most quantum codes that use pure states.
The paper discusses applications of quantum secret sharing, such as sharing quantum keys, distributing quantum entanglement, and ensuring robustness in quantum storage and computation. It also provides an example of a ((2,3)) threshold scheme for a three-dimensional quantum state (a qutrit), where each share is a qutrit and any two shares can reconstruct the secret. The scheme is shown to be a quantum error-correcting code that can correct one erasure error.
The paper proves several theorems, including that a ((k,n)) threshold scheme exists if and only if n < 2k. It also shows that a ((k,2k-1)) threshold scheme can be constructed from a quantum code that corrects k-1 erasure errors. The paper further discusses the relationship between quantum secret sharing and quantum error-correcting codes, showing that the conditions for error correction are equivalent to those for secret sharing.
The paper concludes by discussing the implications of these results, including the impossibility of certain threshold schemes and the equivalence of conditions for quantum secret sharing and error correction. It also highlights the importance of the no-cloning theorem in limiting the feasibility of quantum secret sharing schemes.This paper investigates quantum secret sharing, a method to distribute a quantum state among multiple parties such that any k of them can reconstruct the secret, but any k-1 or fewer cannot gain any information about it. The key constraint is the quantum no-cloning theorem, which requires that n < 2k for a ((k,n)) threshold scheme to exist. The paper presents an efficient construction for such schemes and explores their similarities and differences with quantum error-correcting codes. A notable difference is that quantum secret sharing schemes often use mixed states, unlike most quantum codes that use pure states.
The paper discusses applications of quantum secret sharing, such as sharing quantum keys, distributing quantum entanglement, and ensuring robustness in quantum storage and computation. It also provides an example of a ((2,3)) threshold scheme for a three-dimensional quantum state (a qutrit), where each share is a qutrit and any two shares can reconstruct the secret. The scheme is shown to be a quantum error-correcting code that can correct one erasure error.
The paper proves several theorems, including that a ((k,n)) threshold scheme exists if and only if n < 2k. It also shows that a ((k,2k-1)) threshold scheme can be constructed from a quantum code that corrects k-1 erasure errors. The paper further discusses the relationship between quantum secret sharing and quantum error-correcting codes, showing that the conditions for error correction are equivalent to those for secret sharing.
The paper concludes by discussing the implications of these results, including the impossibility of certain threshold schemes and the equivalence of conditions for quantum secret sharing and error correction. It also highlights the importance of the no-cloning theorem in limiting the feasibility of quantum secret sharing schemes.