Sujai Matta | Searcharxiv

arXiv2026

Long distance quantum illumination and ranging using polarization entangled photon pairs in a lossy environment

Using polarization entangled photon pairs, we demonstrate a robust scheme for quantum illumination and ranging in a lossy environment. Entangled photon pairs are generated in a Sagnac interferometer configuration, yielding high-visibility two-photon polarization entanglement with a measured CHSH parameter of $S =2.802\pm0.002$. One of the photons from the entangled pair is retained as idler and the other one is directed into either of the two paths, namely reference and probe, of which probe is sent toward a distant object through a lossy free-space channel, and the reflected photons are collected after round-trip free-space propagation over distances approaching $1$ km. Remarkably, strong correlations are observed with CHSH values $S >2.6$ even when only a few tens of probe photons are returned, confirming the robustness of polarization entanglement under long-distance free-space propagation. This work reports the robustness of encoding photons in different basis before it is sent towards the object and recovery of polarization entanglement even after a kilometer-scale scattering from the objects, establishing a practical foundation for scalable quantum-assisted object detection and ranging.

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arXiv2024

Four-qubit photonic system for publicly verifiable quantum random numbers and generation of public and private key

We theoretically propose and experimentally demonstrate the use of a configurable four-qubit photonic system to generate a publicly verifiable quantum random numbers, to perform entanglement verification, and to generate secure public and private key. Quantum circuits, to generate the desired four-qubit states and its experimental realization in the photonic architecture is carried out using photon pairs entangled in polarization and path degree of freedom. By performing measurements on the four-qubit system and accessing partial information of the four-qubit state for public verification, we generate publicly verified and purely secured random bits at the rate of 185 kbps from collective data of 370 kbps. When the system is used for generating public and private keys, an equal number of public and private keys are generated simultaneously. We also record about 97.9% of sampled bits from four-qubit states passing entanglement verification and demonstrate the use of public and private key generated for image encryption-decryption. The theoretical model of noise on the four-qubit state and its effect on the generation rate of verified and secured bits are in perfect agreement with the experimental results. This demonstrates the practical use of the small-scale multi-qubit photonic system for quantum-safe applications by providing the option for real-time verification of the security feature of the quantum system.

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