We utilize our knowledge of the quantum cloning to attack quantum cryptographic communications. The principle of quantum cryptography is robust, the eavesdropper is always revealed. But in real conditions, using lossy components some amount for transmission errors is tolerated. That is the way for eavesdropper to gain some information without being detected. Our research has clarified the limits for error rate for two well known protocols proposed by Bennett and Brassard (BB84) and Renes (R04). For both protocols the maximum allowed loss of communication line is 1/6 ≈ 16,7 %.
Experimental setup of the quantum cloner. States of the probed and ancillary photons are prepared with half-wave (HWP) and quarter-wave (QWP) plates. The photons overlap on the polarization-dependent beam splitter (PDBS) and undergo polarization-sensitive filtering in the beam divider assemblies (BDAs).
1RCPTM, Joint Laboratory of Optics of Palacký University and Institute of Physics of Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic
2Faculty of Science, Palacký University, 17. listopadu 12, 771 46 Olomouc, Czech Republic
3Institute of Physics of Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Joint Laboratory of Optics of Palacký University and Institute of Physics of Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, 17. listopadu 12, 77207 Olomouc, Czech Republic
4Faculty of Physics, Adam Mickiewicz University, 61-614 Poznań, Poland
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