High-Rate, High-Dimensional Quantum Key Distribution Systems

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xiii

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2. Introduction

   • Nurul T. Islam

   Pages 1-9

3. Building Blocks of Quantum Key Distribution

   • Nurul T. Islam

   Pages 11-27

4. High-Dimensional Time-Phase QKD

   • Nurul T. Islam

   Pages 29-56

5. Unstructured High-Dimensional Time-Phase QKD

   • Nurul T. Islam

   Pages 57-71

6. Scalable High-Dimensional Time-Bin QKD

   • Nurul T. Islam

   Pages 73-92

7. Cloning of High-Dimensional Quantum States

   • Nurul T. Islam

   Pages 93-105

8. Conclusions and Future Experiments

   • Nurul T. Islam

   Pages 107-110

9. Back Matter

   Pages 111-132

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This book describes a broad research program on quantum communication. Here, a cryptographic key is exchanged by two parties using quantum states of light and the security of the system arises from the fundamental properties of quantum mechanics.  The author developed new communication protocols using high-dimensional quantum states so that more than one classical bit is transferred by each photon.  This approach helps circumvent some of the non-ideal properties of the experimental system, enabling record key rates on metropolitan distance scales. Another important aspect of the work is the encoding of the key on high-dimensional phase-randomized weak coherent states, combined with so-called decoy states to thwart a class of possible attacks on the system.  The experiments are backed up by a rigorous security analysis of the system, which accounts for all known device non-idealities. The author goes on to demonstrate a scalable approach for increasing the dimension of the quantum states, and considers attacks on the system that use optimal quantum cloning techniques.  This thesis captures the current state-of-the-art of the field of quantum communication in laboratory systems, and demonstrates that phase-randomized weak coherent states have application beyond quantum communication.

• quantum communication laboratory systems
• quantum communication security
• quantum key distribution
• phase-randomized weak coherent states
• high-dimensional quantum states
• high-dimensional time-phase QKD
• optimal quantum cloning techniques
• security analysis of quantum communication systems
• quantum key distribution on metropolitan distance scales

• Department of Physics, Duke University, Durham, USA

  Nurul T. Islam

Nurul T. Islam received his PhD from Duke University in 2017. He currently holds a postdoctoral research position at The Ohio State University.

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