QuNET+ICLink – Towards a Future Quantum Internet
The QuNET+ICLink project is developing a highly efficient single photon source for secure quantum communication over fibre optic networks. The aim is to use it in inter-city connections and advanced QKD protocols based on semiconductor quantum dots in the C-band.
Secrecy in data transfer, both in critical infrastructure and in private life, remains a central and
fundamental challenge in our society. In recent decades, this has motivated research in the field of
quantum cryptography worldwide, which enables information-theoretical security based on the laws
of quantum physics. Against this background, the research work of the joint project QuNET+ICLink will be presented, the aim of which is to develop a highly efficient deterministic single-photon source and to validate it for quantum-secured data transmission in conventional telecommunications networks. The deterministic single-photon source is to operate at C-band wavelengths and be used in a fiber-optic inter-city connection. To generate single photons of the highest quality, special semiconductor lasers based on novel quantum structures are being developed as light source for pumping quantum emitters. The single-photon sources themselves are realized based on semiconductor quantum dots embedded in nanophotonic micro-resonators and used, initially on a laboratory scale, for quantum key distribution (QKD). This will be followed by integration into a mobile server-rack compatible QKD demonstrator, which will be used for quantum communication in a 75 km long inter-city fiber optic test track between Jena and Erfurt. In addition, the single-photon source will be evaluated for future use in more complex quantum cryptographic protocols. This applies to both the measurement-device-independent (MDI) QKD and protocols beyond QKD in distrustful settings.
Presentation language: ENG
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