Published Paper Details:

Quantum cryptography is revolutionizing secure communication systems by providing unprecedented security advancements, particularly through Quantum Key Distribution (QKD). The invention of the QKD system has significantly increased the level of security in exchanging private keys. This paper focuses on the study of three widely recognized QKD protocols--BB84, SARG04 and E91. We used IBM's quantum computing framework, Qiskit, to simulate these protocols. We assessed and compared these algorithms by simulating them on our local machine via Qiskit's "qasm_simulator." Our focus was on key generation rates and error rates both in the presence and absence of an eavesdropper. We experimented using varied bit lengths (i.e., number of qubits) to observe how the protocols behave across different scales. Additionally, this study incorporated noise models such as FakeRochester, FakeMelbourne and FakeParis to simulate real-world imperfections such as decoherence and evaluate the simulator's ability to accurately model noise. The results revealed that SARG04 consistently achieved perfect key generation, whereas BB84 demonstrated greater resilience, particularly with longer bit lengths, compared to E91, which performed poorly in noisy environments. The selection of these protocols might be contingent upon particular application needs and their resistance to noise and eavesdropping. Future work could explore enhancements to these protocols or hybrid approaches that combine their strengths to achieve even greater efficiency and security in quantum cryptographic systems.