Course information
Overview
Quantum information and computation have had a profound impact on cryptography, and understanding the connections between them is an active area of research. This course will cover a selection of cutting-edge topics in quantum cryptography, including quantum attacks on classical protocols, provable security against quantum attacks, cryptographic protocols that leverage quantum resources (e.g. quantum key distribution, quantum money, etc.), and connections to quantum complexity theory.
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Resources
Tentative schedule
Week Date Topics Readings
Part I: Information-theoretic quantum cryptography
1 Aug 26/28
  • Intro to quantum information
  • Wiesner’s quantum money scheme
  • Monogamy of entanglement games
Lecture 1 of the MIT course
2 Sep 2/4
  • Applications of MoE
  • BB84 key exchange
3 Sep 9/11 BB84 cont.
4 Sep 16/18
  • Quantum state encryption
  • Impossibility of information-theoretic quantum bit commitments
Part II: Post-quantum cryptography
5 Sep 23/25
  • Intro to classical (post-quantum) cryptography
  • Post-quantum (collapsing) bit commitment
  • Post-quantum zero knowledge
6 Sep 30/Oct 2
  • Quantum rewinding
  • Post-quantum succinct arguments
7 Oct 7/9 The quantum random oracle model
Fall break
8 Oct 16 Regev’s reduction
9 Oct 21/23 Yamakawa-Zhandry
Part III: Quantum cryptography with computational assumptions
10 Oct 28/30 Proofs of quantumness
11 Nov 4/6 Delegating quantum computation
12 Nov 11/13
  • Pseudorandom states (PRS)
  • Commitments from PRS
  • Separating PRS from all classical crypto
13 Nov 19/21 Pseudorandom unitaries (PRU)
14 Nov 25 Quantum cryptography and black holes
Thanksgiving
15 Dec 2/4 Student presentations
Course policies