Gilles Brassard
Encyclopedia
Gilles Brassard was born in Montreal
, Canada
, in 1955. He received a Masters degree from the Université de Montréal
in 1975, and obtained his Ph.D. in Computer Science
from Cornell University
in 1979, working in the field of cryptography with John Hopcroft
as his advisor. He has been a faculty member of the Université de Montréal ever since, where he became Full Professor in 1988 and was given a Canada Research Chair in 2001.
Brassard is best known for his fundamental work in quantum cryptography
, quantum teleportation
, quantum entanglement
distillation, quantum pseudo-telepathy
, and the classical simulation of quantum entanglement. Some of these concepts are still theoretical, but others have been implemented in the laboratory.
In 1984, together with Charles H. Bennett
, he invented the BB84
protocol for quantum cryptography. He later extended this work to include the Cascade error correction protocol, which performs efficient detection and correction of noise caused by eavesdropping on quantum cryptographic signals.
Brassard was the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Cryptology
from 1991 to 1998. In 2000, he won the Prix Marie-Victorin
, the highest scientific award of the government of Quebec. He was elected as a Fellow
of the International Association for Cryptologic Research
in 2006, the first Canadian to be so honored. In June 2010, he was awarded the Gerhard Herzberg Canada Gold Medal, Canada's highest scientific honour. He is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
.
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, in 1955. He received a Masters degree from the Université de Montréal
Université de Montréal
The Université de Montréal is a public francophone research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It comprises thirteen faculties, more than sixty departments and two affiliated schools: the École Polytechnique and HEC Montréal...
in 1975, and obtained his Ph.D. in Computer Science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
from Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
in 1979, working in the field of cryptography with John Hopcroft
John Hopcroft
John Edward Hopcroft is an American theoretical computer scientist. His textbooks on theory of computation and data structures are regarded as standards in their fields. He is the IBM Professor of Engineering and Applied Mathematics in Computer Science at Cornell University.He received his...
as his advisor. He has been a faculty member of the Université de Montréal ever since, where he became Full Professor in 1988 and was given a Canada Research Chair in 2001.
Brassard is best known for his fundamental work in quantum cryptography
Quantum cryptography
Quantum key distribution uses quantum mechanics to guarantee secure communication. It enables two parties to produce a shared random secret key known only to them, which can then be used to encrypt and decrypt messages...
, quantum teleportation
Quantum teleportation
Quantum teleportation, or entanglement-assisted teleportation, is a process by which a qubit can be transmitted exactly from one location to another, without the qubit being transmitted through the intervening space...
, quantum entanglement
Quantum entanglement
Quantum entanglement occurs when electrons, molecules even as large as "buckyballs", photons, etc., interact physically and then become separated; the type of interaction is such that each resulting member of a pair is properly described by the same quantum mechanical description , which is...
distillation, quantum pseudo-telepathy
Quantum pseudo-telepathy
Quantum pseudo-telepathy is a phenomenon in quantum game theory resulting in anomalously high success rates in coordination games between separated players. These high success rates would require communication between the players in a purely classical world; however, the game is set up such that...
, and the classical simulation of quantum entanglement. Some of these concepts are still theoretical, but others have been implemented in the laboratory.
In 1984, together with Charles H. Bennett
Charles H. Bennett (computer scientist)
Charles H. Bennett is an IBM Fellow at IBM Research. Bennett's recent work at IBM has concentrated on a re-examination of the physical basis of information, applying quantum physics to the problems surrounding information exchange...
, he invented the BB84
BB84
BB84 is a quantum key distribution scheme developed by Charles Bennett and Gilles Brassard in 1984. It is the first quantum cryptography protocol. The protocol is provably secure, relying on the quantum property that information gain is only possible at the expense of disturbing the signal if the...
protocol for quantum cryptography. He later extended this work to include the Cascade error correction protocol, which performs efficient detection and correction of noise caused by eavesdropping on quantum cryptographic signals.
Brassard was the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Cryptology
Journal of Cryptology
The Journal of Cryptology is a scientific journal in the field of cryptology and cryptography. The journal is published quarterly by the International Association for Cryptologic Research....
from 1991 to 1998. In 2000, he won the Prix Marie-Victorin
Prix Marie-Victorin
The Prix Marie-Victorin is an award by the Government of Quebec that is part of the Prix du Québec, which "goes to researchers in the pure and applied sciences whose work lies in fields outside biomedicine. These fields include the natural and physical sciences, engineering, and technology, and the...
, the highest scientific award of the government of Quebec. He was elected as a Fellow
Fellow
A fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
of the International Association for Cryptologic Research
International Association for Cryptologic Research
The International Association for Cryptologic Research is a non-profit scientific organization whose purpose is to further research in cryptology and related fields...
in 2006, the first Canadian to be so honored. In June 2010, he was awarded the Gerhard Herzberg Canada Gold Medal, Canada's highest scientific honour. He is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
Royal Society of Canada
The Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
.
External links
- Brassard's web page at the University of Montreal