Quantum holograms: The future of secure messaging

Quantum technology is making it possible to send secret messages through holograms, with the added ability to selectively erase parts of them even after they’ve been dispatched.

While this might sound like something out of a sci-fi movie, it’s becoming a reality.

By harnessing the unique properties of quantum light signals, scientists are developing methods to ensure secure communication where any interception or tampering is instantly detectable.

Unravelling quantum light signals

Before we discuss the study, it’s important to understand the concept of quantum light signals. These signals act as highly secure carriers of information.

What makes them truly fascinating is that any attempt to intercept these signals disturbs their delicate quantum states, which in turn compromises the encoded information.

This unique property ensures that the integrity of the original message is preserved.

Quantum hologram

Now, how are scientists using this quantum feature to their advantage? The answer lies in a research project by a team of scientists headed by Jensen Li from the University of Exeter in the UK.

Their focus was to capitalize on this inherent security without resorting to voluminous devices.

To achieve this objective, they toyed with the idea of Metasurface — a two-dimensional material that can be engineered to exhibit distinct properties.

The goal was to create “quantum holograms” using these metasurfaces.

Holographic process

Traditionally, holograms are capable of encoding complex information that can be retrieved when illuminated in the right way.

For instance, a 2D holographic paper card can present 3D images when light falls on it at the correct angle. The Exeter team followed a similar concept with a quantum twist.

They took a particle of light, known as a photon, and encoded information into its quantum state. This was done through a process starting with the employment of a laser to make a particular crystal emit two photons that were quantumly entangled.

These entangled photons followed separate paths. One photon encountered the metasurface, including thousands of nano-sized components, which transformed the quantum state of this photon in a predefined way, thus encoding a holographic image.

Quantum holograms disappearing act

Simultaneously, the sibling photon encountered a polarized filter. This filter controlled which parts of the hologram would be revealed and which parts would vanish.

Since the first photon’s state was a superpositional assembly of holograms, it contained many possible variants of the message.

The entangled photons’ specialty meant that polarizing one impacted the image created by the other.

As an experiment, a test hologram was created that contained the letters H, D, V, and A. By including a filter for horizontally polarized light, the letter H was erased from the final image.

Li believes that more complex information could be encoded into the photons using the metasurface, potentially as a part of a quantum cryptography protocol.

Perspectives from Andrew Forbes

Li’s revolutionary work was presented at the prestigious SPIE Optics + Photonics conference in San Diego, California, and earned attention from luminaries in the field like Andrew Forbes from the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa.

“Everybody’s dream is to see all this quantum technology … be compact enough to sit in your smartphone. Metasurfaces seem to be a good way to go”, he said, indicating a formidable future for the technology.

Forbes also hinted at the practical implications of Quantum holograms, including imaging tiny biological structures in medical science, a rapidly growing field.

This breakthrough could serve as an unprecedented milestone in secure and efficient communication technology, thereby revolutionizing the field of information technology.

Future possibilities and challenges

The potential applications of quantum holograms are vast, spanning from ultra-secure communications to advanced imaging techniques in medicine and beyond.

As researchers continue to explore this technology, several challenges must be addressed to bring it closer to mainstream use.

One key hurdle is the scalability of the metasurface technology, as creating metasurfaces with consistent quality at a large scale remains a technical challenge.

Additionally, integrating these quantum systems with existing electronic devices, such as smartphones or computers, requires significant innovation in miniaturization and power efficiency.

Despite these challenges, the ongoing advances in quantum technology and materials science promise a future where the seamless integration of quantum holograms into daily life may become a reality, paving the way for new innovations in secure data transmission and beyond.

—–

Like what you read? Subscribe to our newsletter for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates. 

Check us out on EarthSnap, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

—–