586 research outputs found
Continuous variable quantum key distribution with two-mode squeezed states
Quantum key distribution (QKD) enables two remote parties to grow a shared
key which they can use for unconditionally secure communication [1]. The
applicable distance of a QKD protocol depends on the loss and the excess noise
of the connecting quantum channel [2-10]. Several QKD schemes based on coherent
states and continuous variable (CV) measurements are resilient to high loss in
the channel, but strongly affected by small amounts of channel excess noise
[2-6]. Here we propose and experimentally address a CV QKD protocol which uses
fragile squeezed states combined with a large coherent modulation to greatly
enhance the robustness to channel noise. As a proof of principle we
experimentally demonstrate that the resulting QKD protocol can tolerate more
noise than the benchmark set by the ideal CV coherent state protocol. Our
scheme represents a very promising avenue for extending the distance for which
secure communication is possible.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure
Secure Coherent-state Quantum Key Distribution Protocols with Efficient Reconciliation
We study the equivalence between a realistic quantum key distribution
protocol using coherent states and homodyne detection and a formal entanglement
purification protocol. Maximally-entangled qubit pairs that one can extract in
the formal protocol correspond to secret key bits in the realistic protocol.
More specifically, we define a qubit encoding scheme that allows the formal
protocol to produce more than one entangled qubit pair per coherent state, or
equivalently for the realistic protocol, more than one secret key bit. The
entanglement parameters are estimated using quantum tomography. We analyze the
properties of the encoding scheme and investigate its application to the
important case of the attenuation channel.Comment: REVTeX, 11 pages, 2 figure
Continuous-Variable Quantum Key Distribution using Thermal States
We consider the security of continuous-variable quantum key distribution
using thermal (or noisy) Gaussian resource states. Specifically, we analyze
this against collective Gaussian attacks using direct and reverse
reconciliation where both protocols use either homodyne or heterodyne
detection. We show that in the case of direct reconciliation with heterodyne
detection, an improved robustness to channel noise is achieved when large
amounts of preparation noise is added, as compared to the case when no
preparation noise is added. We also consider the theoretical limit of infinite
preparation noise and show a secure key can still be achieved in this limit
provided the channel noise is less than the preparation noise. Finally, we
consider the security of quantum key distribution at various electromagnetic
wavelengths and derive an upper bound related to an entanglement-breaking
eavesdropping attack and discuss the feasibility of microwave quantum key
distribution.Comment: 12 pages, 11 figures. Updated from published version with some minor
correction
Experimental investigation of continuous variable quantum teleportation
We report the experimental demonstration of quantum teleportation of the
quadrature amplitudes of a light field. Our experiment was stably locked for
long periods, and was analyzed in terms of fidelity, F; and with signal
transfer, T_{q}=T^{+}+T^{-}, and noise correlation, V_{q}=V_{in|out}^{+}
V_{in|out}^{-}. We observed an optimum fidelity of 0.64 +/- 0.02, T_{q}= 1.06
+/- 0.02 and V_{q} =0.96 +/- 0.10. We discuss the significance of both T_{q}>1
and V_{q}<1 and their relation to the teleportation no-cloning limit.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Enhancing single-molecule photostability by optical feedback from quantum-jump detection
We report an optical technique that yields an enhancement of single-molecule
photostability, by greatly suppressing photobleaching pathways which involve
photoexcitation from the triplet state. This is accomplished by dynamically
switching off the excitation laser when a quantum-jump of the molecule to the
triplet state is optically detected. This procedure leads to a lengthened
single-molecule observation time and an increased total number of detected
photons. The resulting improvement in photostability unambiguously confirms the
importance of photoexcitation from the triplet state in photobleaching
dynamics, and may allow the investigation of new phenomena at the
single-molecule level
Quantum and classical fidelities for Gaussian states
We examine the physical significance of fidelity as a measure of similarity
for Gaussian states, by drawing a comparison with its classical counterpart. We
find that the relationship between these classical and quantum fidelities is
not straightforward, and in general does not seem to provide insight into the
physical significance of quantum fidelity. To avoid this ambiguity we propose
that the efficacy of quantum information protocols be characterized by
determining their transfer function and then calculating the fidelity
achievable for a hypothetical pure reference input state.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, to be published in J. Opt. Soc. Am. B special
issue on Optical Quantum Information Scienc
Surface-induced charge state conversion of nitrogen-vacancy defects in nanodiamonds
We present a study of the charge state conversion of single nitrogen-vacancy
(NV) defects hosted in nanodiamonds (NDs). We first show that the proportion of
negatively-charged NV defects, with respect to its neutral counterpart
NV, decreases with the size of the ND. We then propose a simple model
based on a layer of electron traps located at the ND surface which is in good
agreement with the recorded statistics. By using thermal oxidation to remove
the shell of amorphous carbon around the NDs, we demonstrate a significant
increase of the proportion of NV defects in 10-nm NDs. These results are
invaluable for further understanding, control and use of the unique properties
of negatively-charged NV defects in diamondComment: 6 pages, 4 figure
Teleportation of continuous variable polarisation states
This paper discusses methods for the optical teleportation of continuous
variable polarisation states. We show that using two pairs of entangled beams,
generated using four squeezed beams, perfect teleportation of optical
polarisation states can be performed. Restricting ourselves to 3 squeezed
beams, we demonstrate that polarisation state teleportation can still exceed
the classical limit. The 3-squeezer schemes involve either the use of quantum
non-demolition measurement or biased entanglement generated from a single
squeezed beam. We analyse the efficacies of these schemes in terms of fidelity,
signal transfer coefficients and quantum correlations
Time-resolved homodyne characterization of individual quadrature-entangled pulses
We describe a simple and efficient setup to generate and characterize
femtosecond quadrature-entangled pulses. Quantum correlations equivalent to
about 2.5 dB squeezing are efficiently and easily reached using the
non-degenerate parametric amplification of femtosecond pulses through a
single-pass in a thin (0.1 mm) potassium niobate crystal. The entangled pulses
are then individually sampled to characterize the non-separability and the
entropy of formation of the states. The complete experiment is analysed in the
time-domain, from the pulsed source of quadrature entanglement to the
time-resolved homodyne detection. This particularity allows for applications in
quantum communication protocols using continuous-variable entanglement.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure
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