A Quantum-Dot Single-Photon Beacon for Celestial Navigation Fixes
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: A navigation beacon that emits one photon at a time, on a precise clock, offers timing information that a classical beacon cannot mimic and cannot be spoofed into. This paper designs a beacon around a triggered quantum-dot single-photon source and computes its timing performance for celestial and terrestrial fix-taking. At a 40 MHz repetition rate with overall efficiency 0.25, the detected rate is 10.0 MHz; the source's second-order correlation of 0.05 certifies the single-photon character. Photon timing centroid precision from a million detected photons is 40 fs against the beacon clock, so a receiver's fix is limited by its own clock and geometry, not by the beacon. The beacon is a design study with computed figures; no source has been operated in this role.
Author: Aldred, William Alexander
Language: English
Subfield: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7225780195