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Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE

Single photon detector comparison in a quantum key distribution test

Jonathan L. Habif, David Pearson, Robert H. Hadfield, Robert E. Schwall, Sae Woo Nam, Aaron Miller

Published Oct 18, 2006• 3 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We provide a direct comparison between the InGaAs avalanche photodiode (APD) and the NbN superconducting single photon detector (SSPD) for applications in fiber-based quantum cryptography. The quantum efficiency and dark count rate were measured for each detector, and used to calculate the quantum bit error rate (QBER) and shared key rate for a QKD link. The results indicate that, despite low quantum efficiency, the speed of the SSPD makes it a superior detector for quantum information applications. Finally, we present results of an initial integration of an SSPD into a receiver node of the DARPA quantum network to perform quantum key distribution.

DOI
10.1117/12.685552

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Abstract In order to realize long‐distance quantum cryptography based on standard optical fiber network, we have developed a single‐photon detector at 1550 nm using InGaAs/InP avalanche photodiodes (APDs). To reduce the dark count probability, APDs were cooled and operated with a Gated Passive Quenching Circuit. A quantum efficiency of 13.7% was obtained at −55 °C while keeping the dark count probability per gate (2 ns) as low as 2.4 × 10−5. In this paper we will discuss the performance of the developed single‐photon detector in view of application to quantum cryptography. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn Pt 2, 86(5): 10–15, 2003; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/ecjb.10115

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The authors report on the full implementation of a superconducting detector technology in a fiber-based quantum key distribution (QKD) link. Nanowire-based superconducting single-photon detectors (SSPDs) offer infrared single-photon detection with low dark counts, low jitter, and short recovery times. These detectors are highly promising candidates for future high key rate QKD links operating at 1550nm. The authors use twin SSPDs to perform the BB84 protocol in a 1550nm fiber-based QKD link clocked at 3.3MHz. They exchange secure key over a distance of 42.5km in telecom fiber and demonstrate that secure key can be transmitted over a total link loss exceeding 12dB.

Applied Physics Letters•Dec 11, 2006•125 citations
We provide a direct comparison between the InGaAs avalanche photodiode (APD) and the NbN superconducting single photon detector (SSPD) for applications in fiber-based quantum cryptography. The quantum efficiency and dark count rate were measured for each detector, and used to calculate the quantum bit error rate (QBER) and shared key rate for a QKD link. The results indicate that, despite low quantum efficiency, the speed of the SSPD makes it a superior detector for quantum information applications. Finally, we present results of an initial integration of an SSPD into a receiver node of the DARPA quantum network to perform quantum key distribution.
We provide a direct comparison between the InGaAs avalanche photodiode (APD) and the NbN superconducting single photon detector (SSPD) for applications in fiber-based quantum cryptography. The quantum efficiency and dark count rate were measured for each detector, and used to calculate the quantum bit error rate (QBER) and shared key rate for a QKD link. The results indicate that, despite low quantum efficiency, the speed of the SSPD makes it a superior detector for quantum information applications. Finally, we present results of an initial integration of an SSPD into a receiver node of the DARPA quantum network to perform quantum key distribution. Encoding quantum information on single photons has enabled the realization of a number of unique communication schemes such as the implementation of the BB84 protocol for quantum key distribution 1 and quantum dense coding. 2 Furthermore, the implementation of these schemes using photons at telecommunication wavelengths has permitted their extension to fiber optic networks, 3,4 drastically increasing the practicality of quantum information processing. To date, the state of the art in commercially available single photon detection at telecommunication wavelengths (1550 nm) has been the thermo-electrically cooled InGaAs avalanche photodiode (APD). The cooled InGaAs APD is generally operated at T = -60°C in the reverse-biased Geiger mode. Though these detectors have been successfully implemented in operating QKD links in optical fiber, the InGaAs APD suffers from afterpulsing effects that limit the key exchange rates. New SPD (single photon detector) technologies based on superconducting materials are emerging that hold tremendous promise for drastically increasing the photon counting rate and eliminating dark noise.57 The SSPD consists of a NbN thin film (t ∼ 5 nm) patterned into a narrow (w ∼ 100 nm) microstrip meander that is ∼ 500μm in length. The detector is cooled to T < 4K in a closed cycle refrigeration unit and a bias current I b is supplied to the device just below the superconducting critical current (I c ). When a photon is incident upon the microstrip superconductivity is broken in the region local to photon absorption and a normal state region is formed in the device. The current passing through the device causes a measurable voltage pulse in the detector that can be amplified and shaped to act as an input for traditional logic circuitry. Due to the unique electronic bandstructure in a superconducting material the intrinsic response time of the device is on the order of picoseconds, so that the repetition rate may be increased above 1 GHz 8 without being susceptible to afterpulsing effects that plague the InGaAs APD. 9 To make a direct comparison between the InGaAs APD and the SSPD both were placed in a SPD characterization testbed to measure quantum efficiency and dark count rate at a variety of bias conditions. The QBER for a QKD link is calculated from the measured parameters and then compared to requirements for a provably secure QKD link. Following detector characterization, one of the nodes of the DARPA Quantum Network operated by BBN Technologies 3 utilized an SSPD in the receiver to transmit key material. The demonstration provides an in situ comparison between the InGaAs APD, normally operated in the BBN link, and the SSPD.
We present the latest results on two kinds of photon detectors: single photon detectors (SPDs) and photon number resolving detector (PNRD). We developed high speed and low noise SPDs using superconducting nano-wire (abbreviated by SNSPD) and semiconductor (InGaAs) avalanche photodiode (APD). The SNSPD system has totally four channels all of which have the detection eciency higher than 16% at 100Hz dark count rate. The InGaAs APD system also has four channels and the best performance is represented by the after-pulse probability of 0.61%, the dark count probability of 0.71×10-6 (~1kHz), and the detection eciency of 10.9%. Both systems were applied to wavelength division multiplexing quantum key distribution (WDM-QKD) operated at 1.2GHz repetition rate in a eld environment. The PNRD is made of superconducting transition edge sensor. It was applied to the implementation of quantum receiver which could beat the homodyne limit of the bit error rate of binary coherent states. We discuss future perspective of quantum communications with those photon detection technologies, including multi-user QKD networks and low-power high capacity communications.
Quantum communication, in particular, quantum key distribution (QKD) is moving ever closer to real world implementation. However, for successful QKD system deployment, the QKD system components must be robustly designed and feature highly reliable operation. In this paper we focus on one important aspect of any quantum communication system: the single photon detector. In particular our interest is centered upon the InGaAs avalanche photodiode (APD) single photon detector operating in a self-differencing (SD) mode. Such a detector features high clock frequencies of up to 3GHz, high photon count rates as well as detection efficiencies approaching 20% with low afterpulsing. We show successful operation of a high bit rate QKD system using this SD-APD technology in a real world fiber network.
In our experiment, two InGaAs/InP avalanche photodiodes (APD) were used in the quantum key distribution (QKD) system for single-photon detection at telecom communication wavelength (1310/1550 nm). By using properly designed passive-quenching circuit, the photo-detection efficiency of the APD could reach 10% at 1550 nm. In order to decrease the dark count rate efficiently, we designed a coincident counting circuits for single-photon detection. Before the APD signals were sent to the signal processing circuit, the avalanche signals were amplified and shaped into the TTL pulses. In order to obtain an accurate and efficient data acquisition and to transfer synchronically several signals such as the TTL signals and pulses from Random generators, we designed a signal processing circuit with the parallel port whose speed limitation is about 100Kb/s. In our experiments of single-photon interference and quantum cryptography, the electronic designs presented us satisfactory performance and results. To achieve much higher speed for the data acquisition, we also employed the Universal Serial Bus System (USB2.0) to interface our single-photon avalanche detectors and random generators used in our QKD system, which was believed to improve the performance of QKD such as the key distribution speed.
Abstract In order to realize long‐distance quantum cryptography based on standard optical fiber network, we have developed a single‐photon detector at 1550 nm using InGaAs/InP avalanche photodiodes (APDs). To reduce the dark count probability, APDs were cooled and operated with a Gated Passive Quenching Circuit. A quantum efficiency of 13.7% was obtained at −55 °C while keeping the dark count probability per gate (2 ns) as low as 2.4 × 10−5. In this paper we will discuss the performance of the developed single‐photon detector in view of application to quantum cryptography. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn Pt 2, 86(5): 10–15, 2003; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/ecjb.10115
The authors report on the full implementation of a superconducting detector technology in a fiber-based quantum key distribution (QKD) link. Nanowire-based superconducting single-photon detectors (SSPDs) offer infrared single-photon detection with low dark counts, low jitter, and short recovery times. These detectors are highly promising candidates for future high key rate QKD links operating at 1550nm. The authors use twin SSPDs to perform the BB84 protocol in a 1550nm fiber-based QKD link clocked at 3.3MHz. They exchange secure key over a distance of 42.5km in telecom fiber and demonstrate that secure key can be transmitted over a total link loss exceeding 12dB.