Measurement-device-independent quantum key distribution(MDI-QKD) is aimed at removing all detector side channel attacks,while its security relies on the assumption that the encoding systems including sources are fully characterized by the two legitimate parties. By exploiting the mismatched-basis statistics in the security analysis, MDI-QKD even with uncharacterized qubits can generate secret keys. In this paper, considering the finite size effect, we study the decoy-state MDI-QKD protocol with mismatchedbasis events statistics by performing full parameter optimization, and the simulation result shows that this scheme is very practical.
We theoretically investigate the entanglement properties in a hybrid system consisting of an optical cavity-array coupled to a mechanical resonator. We show that the steady state of the system presents bipartite continuous variable entanglement in an experimentally accessible parameter regime. The effects of the cavity-cavity coupling strength on the bipartite entanglements in the field-mirror subsystem and in the field-field subsystem are studied. We further find that the entanglement between the adjacent cavity and the movable mirror can be entirely transferred to the distant cavity and mirror by properly choosing the cavity detunings and the coupling strength in the two-cavity case. Surprisingly, such a remote macroscopic entanglement tends to be stable in the large coupling regime and persists for environment temperatures at above 25 K in the three-cavity case. Such optomechanical systems can be used for the realization of continuous variable quantum information interfaces and networks.
Quantum key distribution （QKD） is a technology with the potential capability to achieve information-theoretic security. Phase- coding is an important approach to develop practical QKD systems in fiber channel. In order to improve the phase-coding modulation rate, we proposed a new digital-modulation method in this paper and constructed a compact and robust prototype of QKD system using currently available components in our lab to demonstrate the effectiveness of the method. The system was deployed in laboratory environment over a 50 km fiber and continuously operated during 87 h without manual interaction. The quantum bit error rate （QBER） of the system was stable with an average value of 3.22% and the secure key generation rate is 8.91 kbps. Although the modulation rate of the photon in the derno system was only 200 MHz, which was limited by the Faraday- Michelson interferometer （FMI） structure, the proposed method and the field programmable gate array （FPGA） based electronics scheme have a great potential for high speed QKD systems with Giga-bits/second modulation rate.
Post-processing is indispensable in quantum key distribution （QKD）, which is aimed at sharing secret keys between two distant parties. It mainly consists of key reconciliation and privacy amplification, which is used for sharing the same keys and for distilling unconditional secret keys. In this paper, we focus on speeding up the privacy amplification process by choosing a simple multiplicative universal class of hash functions. By constructing an optimal multiplication algorithm based on four basic multiplication algorithms, we give a fast software implementation of length-adaptive privacy amplification. ＂Length-adaptive＂ indicates that the implementation of privacy amplification automatically adapts to different lengths of input blocks. When the lengths of the input blocks are 1 Mbit and 10 Mbit, the speed of privacy amplification can be as fast as 14.86 Mbps and 10.88 Mbps, respectively. Thus, it is practical for GHz or even higher repetition frequency QKD systems.
We investigate the phase sensitivity of the SU（1,1） interfereometer [SU（1,1）I] and the modified Mach-Zehnder in- terferometer （MMZI） with the entangled coherent states （ECS） as inputs. We consider the ideal case and the situations in which the photon losses are taken into account. We find that, under ideal conditions, the phase sensitivity of both the MMZI and the SU（1,1）I can beat the shot-noise limit （SNL） and approach the Heisenberg limit （HL）. In the presence of photon losses, the ECS can beat the coherent and squeezed states as inputs in the SU（1,1）I, and the MMZI is more robust against internal photon losses than the SU（1,1）I.
Versatile devices,especially tunable ones,for terahertz imaging,sensing and high-speed communication,are in high demand.Liquid crystal based components are perfect candidates in the optical range;however,they encounter significant challenges in the terahertz band,particularly the lack of highly transparent electrodes and the drawbacks induced by a thick cell.Here,a strategy to overcome all these challenges is proposed:Few-layer porous graphene is employed as an electrode with a transmittance of more than 98%.A subwavelength metal wire grid is utilized as an integrated high-efficiency electrode and polarizer.The homogeneous alignment of a high-birefringence liquid crystal is implemented on both frail electrodes via a non-contact photo-alignment technique.A tunable terahertz waveplate is thus obtained.Its polarization evolution is directly demonstrated.Furthermore,quarter-wave plates that are electrically controllable over the entire testing range are achieved by stacking two cells.The proposed solution may pave a simple and bright road toward the development of various liquid crystal terahertz apparatuses.
Lei WangXiao-Wen LinWei HuGuang-Hao ShaoPeng ChenLan-Ju LiangBiao-Bing JinPei-Heng WuHao QianYi-Nong LuXiao LiangZhi-Gang ZhengYan-Qing Lu
We propose a scheme for entangling two nanomechanical oscillators by Coulomb interaction in an optomechanical system. We find that the steady-state entanglement of two charged nanomechanical oscillators can be obtained when the coupling between them is stronger than a critical value which relies on the detuning. Remarkably, the degree of entanglement can be controlled by the Coulomb interaction and the frequencies of the two charged Oscillators.
In a practical quantum key distribution（QKD） system, imperfect equipment, especially the single-photon detector,can be eavesdropped on by a blinding attack. However, the original blinding attack may be discovered by directly detecting the current. In this paper, we propose a probabilistic blinding attack model, where Eve probabilistically applies a blinding attack without being caught by using only an existing intuitive countermeasure. More precisely, our countermeasure solves the problem of how to define the bound in the limitation of precision of current detection, and then we prove security of the practical system by considering the current parameter. Meanwhile, we discuss the bound of the quantum bit error rate（QBER） introduced by Eve, by which Eve can acquire information without the countermeasure.
We report an adjustable unbalanced quantum random-number generator based on the polarization of photons,which can produce nondeterministic true random unbalanced numbers. The underlying physical process is inherently quantum mechanical. To prove the quality of the output sequence of the proposed generator, we test the obtained bias-free sequence through the 3-standard-deviation criteria and the National Institutes of Standards and Technology test suite. Another type of nondeterministic unbalanced random-number generator is also studied in this work, to evaluate the quality of the output biased random numbers.
The statistical error is ineluctable in any measurement. Quantum techniques, especially with the development of quantum information, can help us squeeze the statistical error and enhance the precision of measurement. In a quantum system, there are some quantum parameters, such as the quantum state, quantum operator, and quantum dimension, which have no classical counterparts. So quantum metrology deals with not only the traditional parameters, but also the quantum parameters. Quantum metrology includes two important parts： measuring the physical parameters with a precision beating the classical physics limit and measuring the quantum parameters precisely. In this review, we will introduce how quantum characters （e.g., squeezed state and quantum entanglement） yield a higher precision, what the research areas are scientists most interesting in, and what the development status of quantum metrology and its perspectives are.
