Experimental demonstration of memory-enhanced quantum communication
Name
1909.01323.pdf
Description
Submitted version
Size
5.09 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
758603c1cfd548439ce10db451325e98
Author(s)
Englund, Dirk R.
Date Issued
March 2020
Journal
Nature
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Citation
Bhaskar, M. K. et al. “Experimental demonstration of memory-enhanced quantum communication.” Nature 580, 7801 (March 2020): 60-64 © 2020 The Author(s)
Version
Original manuscript
Abstract
The ability to communicate quantum information over long distances is of central importance in quantum science and engineering. Although some applications of quantum communication such as secure quantum key distribution are already being successfully deployed, their range is currently limited by photon losses and cannot be extended using straightforward measure-and-repeat strategies without compromising unconditional security. Alternatively, quantum repeaters, which utilize intermediate quantum memory nodes and error correction techniques, can extend the range of quantum channels. However, their implementation remains an outstanding challenge, requiring a combination of efficient and high-fidelity quantum memories, gate operations, and measurements. Here we use a single solid-state spin memory integrated in a nanophotonic diamond resonator to implement asynchronous photonic Bell-state measurements, which are a key component of quantum repeaters. In a proof-of-principle experiment, we demonstrate high-fidelity operation that effectively enables quantum communication at a rate that surpasses the ideal loss-equivalent direct-transmission method while operating at megahertz clock speeds. These results represent a crucial step towards practical quantum repeaters and large-scale quantum networks.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Research Laboratory of Electronics
Terms of Use
Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use.
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1038/S41586-020-2103-5
