Phase encoded quantum key distribution up to 380 km in standard telecom grade fiber enabled by baseline error optimization

Abstract

Abstract Phase encoding in quantum key distribution (QKD) enables long-distance information-theoretic secure communication in optical fibers. We present a novel theoretical model characterizing errors from various sources in practical phase encoding-based QKD systems, namely the laser linewidth, detector dark counts, and channel dispersion. This model provides optimized optical pulse parameters and less distortion in pulses, which eliminates system imperfections and leads to a reduced quantum bit error rate (QBER) for practical QKD scenario. This analysis is applicable to various fiber-based phase and time encoding protocols. In particular, we implement this to a differential phase shift (DPS) QKD scheme operating at a 2.5 GHz clock, which produces a secure key rate of 193 bits/s at a fiber length of 265 km and an unprecedented QBER < 1 $$\%$$ % up to 225 km length with standard telecom components. We show that by adjusting the quantum efficiency and dark count rates of detectors, proposed system can establish secure keys up to 380 km distance using standard telecom grade fiber with a QBER of 1.48%. Moreover, the system is compatible with existing optical fiber networks and capable of establishing a secure key exchange between two cities 432 km apart using ultra-low-loss (ULL) specialty fiber.