Optical image encryption based on two-channel detection and deep learning

•By integrating with deep learning (DL) technique, an optical cryptosystem is presented based on a single-wavelength, dual-channel system.•In this cryptosystem, an encrypted image processor (EIP) is designed for achieving high-quality recovery based on DL, which is not achievable with difficult traditional decryption algorithms.•Besides the model parameters, the decryption requires the use of the matrix keys, which avoids a situation where the DL-based cryptosystem is designed such that security relies entirely on the trained network itself.