Method and apparatus for free-space quantum key distribution in daylight
Hughes, Richard J.; Buttler, William T.; Lamoreaux, Steve K.; Morgan, George L.; Nordholt, Jane E.; Peterson, C. Glen; Kwiat, Paul G. · OSTI OAI (U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information) · 2023
A quantum cryptography apparatus securely generates a key to be used for secure transmission between a sender and a receiver connected by an atmospheric transmission link. A first laser outputs a timing bright light pulse; other lasers output polarized optical data pulses after having been enabled by a random bit generator. Output optics transmit output light from the lasers that is received by receiving optics. A first beam splitter receives light from the receiving optics, where a received timing bright light pulse is directed to a delay circuit for establishing a timing window for receiving light from the lasers and where an optical data pulse from one of the lasers has a probability of being either transmitted by the beam splitter or reflected by the beam splitter. A first polarizer receives transmitted optical data pulses to output one data bit value and a second polarizer receives reflected optical data pulses to output a second data bit value. A computer receives pulses representing receipt of a timing bright timing pulse and the first and second data bit values, where receipt of the first and second data bit values is indexed by the bright timing pulse.