Silicon photonic transmitter for polarization-encoded quantum key distribution
Creators
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1.
University of Toronto
Abstract
Silicon (Si) photonics is forming a fabless ecosystem, which is enabling low-cost and densely integrated components for optical communications and quantum information. We present a Si optical transmitter for polarization-encoded quantum key distribution (QKD). The chip was fabricated in a standard Si photonic foundry process and integrated together a pulse generator, intensity modulator, variable optical attenuator, and polarization modulator in a 1.3 mm×3 mm1.3 mm×3 mm die area. The devices in the photonic circuit meet the requirements for QKD. The transmitter was used in a proof-of-concept demonstration of the BB84 QKD protocol over a 5 km long fiber link. This work shows the potential of using foundry Si photonics for low-cost, wafer-scale fabricated components for quantum information.
Additional Information
© 2016 Optical Society of America. Received 6 June 2016; revised 30 August 2016; accepted 5 October 2016 (Doc. ID 267802); published 31 October 2016. The fabrication was supported by CMC Microsystems. We thank Dr. D. Deptuck for his assistance during tapeout and Prof. L. Qian for the loan of the SPADs. Funding: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC); Canada Research Chairs; Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI); Ontario Research Fund.Attached Files
Supplemental Material - optica-3-11-1274.pdf
Files
optica-3-11-1274.pdf
Additional details
Identifiers
- Eprint ID
- 73112
- Resolver ID
- CaltechAUTHORS:20161221-162833944
Funding
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)
- Canada Research Chairs Program
- Canada Foundation for Innovation
- Ontario Research Fund
Dates
- Created
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2016-12-22Created from EPrint's datestamp field
- Updated
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2021-11-11Created from EPrint's last_modified field