All these days most of us thought that numbers generated on a random note could be unhackable. But in the year 2017, some scientists from China proved that all sequential passwords generated even by specific mathematical formulae can be uncovered by supercomputers.
However, recently, scientists from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Maryland say that those passwords generated with the help of Quantum mechanics appear to be unbreakable- well at least for now. Thus, they argue that the technology can help in creating new encryption methods that cannot be breached using Brute Force trial and error methods.
As measurements of some quantum particles produce fundamentally unpredictable results, NIST mathematician Peter Bierhorst says that these findings can be used in creating numbers which are hard to predict.
Going with the case of superposition, a subatomic particle can exist in two contradictory states at the same time and that’s a proven theory. When it comes to binary codes produced by computers to process data, they can be a 1 or a 0 on a simultaneous note making it impossible to tell what info they carry.
The scientists at the NIST in Gaithersburg, Maryland used photons or particles of light from a laser to generate random numbers. This was achieved by the use of a process named ‘Bell Test’.
Hence, by implying the law of quantum physics, experts measured whether the entangled photons were in a 1 or 0 state to obtain their random number.
Note- Entangled particles remain connected to each other so that the action of one affects the behavior of the other, even though if they are separated by huge distances.
The presence of spooky action at a distance created a theory to build a landmark for the experiment of NIST scientists.
In fact, the bell test experiment was conducted more than 55 million times and is said to have produced 89% of success.
More details on the experiment will be updated shortly!
