Abstract: The BB84 protocol for unconditionally secure key distribution was discovered by Bennet and Brassard in 1984. This was the first hint that a basic cryptographic task like key distribution, which is impossible with only classical resources, becomes possible when one has access to quantum resources. Since then, research in quantum cryptography has exploded, and gone beyond key distribution to other harder tasks of interest like Bit Commitment and Oblivious Transfer, which lie at the heart of modern secure computation systems.

In this talk, we will consider a recent advance in the field of Device Independent Quantum Cryptography, where we show that in the Bounded Quantum Storage model fully device independent statistically secure Oblivious Transfer is possible. We will also talk about some recent improvements to the BB84 protocol itself which were previously considered beyond the reach of current techniques. This talk is based on joint work with Rahul Jain and his group at the Centre for Quantum Technologies at the National University of Singapore (arxiv: 2404.11283) and ongoing work with Pranab Sen at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai.

About the Speaker: Sayantan Chakraborty finished his PhD in 2022 under the guidance of Prof. Pranab Sen at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai. After this, he worked in Prof. Rahul Jain's group at the Centre for Quantum Technologies, National University of Singapore, and with Profs. Frederic Dupuis and Louis Salvail at the University of Montreal. He is currently a research assistant in the group of Prof. Andreas Winter at the University of Cologne. His research interests lie in Quantum Information Theory and Quantum Cryptography.

We look forward to seeing you there.