New approaches to quantum communication: safe and quick via fiber optic!

New approaches to quantum communication: safe and quick via fiber optic!

In the past few weeks there have been exciting developments in the world of quantum communication, which are anything but unimportant for the future of data transmission. At the Leibniz Institute for Photonic Technologies (IPHT) in Jena, a team under the direction of Prof. Dr. Mario Chemnitz worked on new methods that make it possible to transmit sensitive information about fiber optic lines more safely and more efficiently. According to Pro-Physics , a current study shows that the range of adhesive times of encrypted quantum connections can be expanded to up to 200 kilometers.

What makes these developments special? The researchers have two approaches in their luggage. The first significantly increases the information density per light particle, while the second improves the stability of the signal over large distances. This means not only a higher signal quality, but also a significant increase in security in the transmission. Because in quantum communication, the property of photons is used to behave in special quantum -physical conditions. These conditions change when someone tries to listen to the data, which is immediately measurable.

The technical hurdles

Despite the promising progress, however, technical challenges remain. In particular, the signal stability over large distances and the effective information transmission per light particle are central points where research is carried out. The study, which in renowned specialist magazines such as Nature Communications and Physical Review letters presented solutions that have the potential, quantum communication every day Make and integrate into existing fiber optic networks.

An interesting feature of research is the so-called time-Bin coding, in which photons transmit information about your arrival time in different time windows. The team around Chemnitz has developed a photonic platform that uses up to eight time windows per photon. This increases the data rate and improves the efficiency of the system.

The future of communication

For the future, quantum communication could be used in many areas, be it in medicine, administration or industry. The safe transmission of sensitive data is of the top priority. Mario Chemnitz emphasizes that it is important to combine basic research with technical application so that these technologies can soon be used in everyday life.

Overall, the work on Leibniz-IPHT shows that research at the interface between non-linear optics, machine learning and neuromorphic data processing creates numerous options not only to transfer information, but also to analyze and interpret and interpret them intelligently. It remains exciting to follow how quantum communication will develop in the near future and which new technologies we may be able to use soon!