Work

Data postprocessing for the one-way heterodyne protocol under composable finite-size security

Year: 2022

Type: article

Abstract: The performance of a practical continuous-variable quantum key distribution protocol depends significantly, apart from the loss and noise of the quantum channel, on the postprocessing steps which lead to the extraction of the final secret key. A critical step is the reconciliation process, especially when one assumes finite-size effects in a composable framework. Here, we focus on the Gaussian-modulated coherent-state protocol with heterodyne detection in a high signal-to-noise ratio regime. We simulate the quantum communication process and we postprocess the output data by applying parameter estimation, error correction (using high-rate, nonbinary low-density parity-check codes) and privacy amplification. This allows us to study the performance for practical implementations of the protocol and optimize the parameters connected to the steps above. We also present an associated Python library performing the steps above.

Source: Physical Review A

DOI: 10.1103/physreva.106.042606

Authors: Alexander G. Mountogiannakis, Panagiotis Papanastasiou, Stefano Pirandola

Institution: University of York

Language: English

Topic: Quantum Information and Cryptography

Subfield: Artificial Intelligence

Field: Computer Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funder: Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council

Awards: The EPSRC Quantum Communications Hub, DTP 2018-19 University of York