Abstract:

A quantum two-party authentication protocol based on entanglement swapping is proposed. This protocol is extended to a multi-party authentication protocol. In the protocols, the previously shared entangled pairs by users act as the authentication keys. The authentication among the users are realized by performing entanglement swapping on the shared entangled particles and by performing the classical communication. The security of the protocols is discussed respectively.

Key words: entanglement swapping, quantum two-party authentication, quantum multi-party authentication