Novel qubit block encryption algorithm with hybrid keys

By combining quantum key with classical one, a novel block cryptographic algorithm that can be applied to encrypt qubits is presented. The security of the algorithm is analyzed from several aspects. It is shown that the qubit block encryption algorithm can prevent quantum attacking strategy as well as classical attacking strategy. The hybrid keys are securely reusable after a checking process, which lessens the task of key management significantly. The proposed algorithm offers an alternative to the standard one-time-pad encryption of a quantum bit string using a quantum key. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.