Towards the engineering of a quantum key distribution receiver robust to ambient light

Vincent Lee; Andy Schreier; Grahame Faulkner; Dominic O'Brien

doi:10.1117/12.2645135

11 January 2023 Towards the engineering of a quantum key distribution receiver robust to ambient light

Vincent Lee, Andy Schreier, Grahame Faulkner, Dominic O'Brien

Proceedings Volume 12335, Quantum Technology: Driving Commercialisation of an Enabling Science III; 123350A (2023) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2645135
Event: SPIE Photonex, 2022, Birmingham, United Kingdom

Abstract

Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) has the potential to secure indoor optical wireless links. In a typical room scenario, an indoor optical wireless link will have a transmitter on the ceiling and a receiver on a desk. Ambient light from room (typically LED) lighting on the ceiling and sunlight coming through the windows present a challenging environment for free-space QKD links to operate, and a key challenge is to mitigate the noise induced by ambient light, particularly sunlight. A combination of spectral and spatial filtering can be used to reduce the effect of ambient light, with a narrowband optical filter typically used. Moreover, the wavelength of operation is key to further reduce the impact of ambient light. Wavelengths in ‘quiet’ regions of the solar spectrum, such as the atmospheric absorption bands, are promising candidates. We are currently working on a system that operates at 1370 nm, where water and carbon dioxide absorption band in the atmosphere attenuate the solar spectrum substantially. This paper reports the design and modelling of the system, with a series of validation measurements to characterise the effect of solar radiation on a typical photon-counting detector as would be used in a QKD system. The aim of this work is to show the feasibility of the wavelength region around 1370 nm as a necessary step towards a low noise QKD receiver for indoor optical wireless links in a practical environment.

Conference Presentation

Citation Download Citation

Vincent Lee, Andy Schreier, Grahame Faulkner, and Dominic O'Brien "Towards the engineering of a quantum key distribution receiver robust to ambient light", Proc. SPIE 12335, Quantum Technology: Driving Commercialisation of an Enabling Science III, 123350A (11 January 2023); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2645135

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