'Dead time' limits quantum cryptography speeds

Quantum cryptography is potentially the most secure method of sending encrypted information, but does it have a speed limit" According to a new paper by researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Joint Quantum Institute, technological and security issues will stall maximum transmission rates at levels comparable to that of a single broadband connection, such as a cable modem, unless researchers reduce “dead times” in the detectors that receive quantum-encrypted messages. The JQI is a research partnership that includes NIST and the University of Maryland.