Current Research and Future Direction

My research extends over most aspects of information processing in quantum-mechanical systems, with a focus on quantum cryptography and quantum computation. It is a cross-disciplinary field bringing together theoretical and experimental quantum physics, mathematics, logic, computer science and information theory. My work is mostly theoretical but its results also bear directly on issues of experimental implementation. One reason why it has attracted attention from industry and government agencies is that quantum cryptography can guarantee perfectly secure communication. Another is that projected quantum computers will be capable of efficiently solving some problems for which there is believed to be no efficient classical algorithm.

Professor A Ekert is one of the world's leading authorities in Quantum Information Science, in particular Quantum Cryptography. His presence has enriched the intellectual excitement in NUS by attracting outstanding physicists to collaborate with the Quantum Information Technology (QIT) Group. He will continue to lead the Group and take it to greater heights. He has provisionally agreed to take up the directorship of the proposed Research Centre of Excellence (RCE) in Quantum Information Science & Technology.

1. Matthias Christandl, Nilanjana Datta, Artur Ekert, Andrew J. Landahl, Perfect state transfer in quantum spin networks , Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 187902 (2004), eprint arXiv:quant-ph/0309131
   

2. Claudio Albanese, Matthias Christandl, Nilanjana Datta, Artur Ekert, Mirror inversion of quantum states in linear registers , eprint arXiv:quant-ph/0405029
   

3. Matthias Christandl, Renato Renner, Artur Ekert, A Generic Security Proof for Quantum Key Distribution , eprint arXiv:quant-ph/0402131
   

4. Jiangfeng Du, Thomas Durt, Ping Zou, L.C. Kwek, C.H. Lai, C.H. Oh, Artur Ekert, Experimental demonstration of an efficient quantum phase-covariant cloning and its possible applications to simulating eavesdropping in quantum cryptography , eprint arXiv:quant-ph/0311010
   

5. Jiangfeng Du, Ping Zou, Mingjun Shi, Leong Chuan Kwek,, Jian-Wei Pan, C. H. Oh, Artur Ekert, Daniel K. L. Oi, and Marie Ericsson, Observation of Geometric Phases for Mixed States using NMR Interferometry , Phys. Rev. Lett. 91, 100403 (2003) , eprint arXiv:quant-ph/0305054