Continuous-variable quantum key distribution in fast fading channels

• Published in: arXiv.org
• Main Authors: Papanastasiou, Panagiotis, Weedbrook, Christian, Pirandola, Stefano
• Format: Paper Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ithaca Cornell University Library, arXiv.org 10.10.2017
• Subjects: Atmospheric turbulence; Channels; Configurations; Continuity (mathematics); Fading; Physics - Quantum Physics; Protocol (computers); Quantum cryptography; Statistical analysis; Transmissivity
• ISSN: 2331-8422
• DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.1710.03525

We investigate the performance of several continuous-variable quantum key distribution protocols in the presence of fading channels. These are lossy channels whose transmissivity changes according to a probability distribution. This is typical in communication scenarios where remote parties are connected by free-space links subject to atmospheric turbulence. In this work, we assume the worst-case scenario where an eavesdropper has full control of a fast fading process, so that she chooses the instantaneous transmissivity of a channel, while the remote parties can only detect the mean statistical process. In our study, we consider coherent-state protocols run in various configurations, including the one-way switching protocol in reverse reconciliation, the measurement-device-independent protocol in the symmetric configuration and a three-party measurement-device-independent network. We show that, regardless of the advantage given to the eavesdropper (full control of fading), these protocols can still achieve high rates.