We propose one of the very few constructive consequences of the second law of thermodynamics. More specifically, we present protocols for secret-key establishment and multiparty computation the security of which is based fundamentally on Landauer's principle. The latter states that the erasure cost of each bit of information is at least kTln2 (where k is Boltzmann's constant and T is the absolute temperature of the environment). Albeit impractical, our protocols explore the limits of reversible computation, and the only assumption about the adversary is her inability to access a quantity of free energy that is exponential in the one of the honest participants. Our results generalize to the quantum realm.
翻译:我们提出了热力学第二定律的少数建设性后果之一。更具体地说,我们提出了秘密钥匙装置和多方计算安全性的规程,其基本依据是Landauer的原则。后者指出,每部分信息的去除成本至少是kTln2(K是Boltzmann的常数,T是环境的绝对温度 ) 。 尽管不切实际,我们的规程探索了可逆计算的限制,而对手的唯一假设是她无法获得在诚实参与者之一中指数化的大量自由能源。我们的结果概括了量子领域。