MQC-MB: multiphoton quantum communication using multiple-beam concept in free space optical channel

• Main Authors: Harun, Nur Ziadah, Ahmad Zukarnain, Zuriati, Mohd Hanapi, Zurina, Ahmad, Idawaty, Khodr, Majed F.
• Format: Article
• Published: MDPI 2021
• Online Access: http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/94282/; https://www.mdpi.com/2073-8994/13/1/66

Multiphoton Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) has recently been proposed to exchange the secret keys using the rotational of polarization over a multi-stage protocol. It has the ability to outperform the weaknesses of a single photon QKD by improving the generation of key rate and distance range. This paper investigates the theoretical aspects of multiphoton QKD protocol’s performance over free space optic (FSO) networks. The most common setup for quantum communication is the single-beam approach. However, the single-beam setup has limitations in terms of high geometrical loss. In this paper, the symmetry multiple-beam for quantum communication which is called as Multiphoton Quantum Communication-Multiple Beam (MQC-MB) is proposed to transmit the multiphoton from the sender to the receiver in order to minimize the impact of geometrical loss that is faced by the single-beam setup. The analysis was carried out through mathematical analysis by establishing the FSO quantum model with the effects of atmospheric and geometrical loss as well as considering atmospheric turbulence modeled by log-normal distribution. The design criteria of FSO, such as the transmitter, receiver, beam divergence, and diameter of apertures, are analytically investigated. The numerical results demonstrate that the MQC-MB outperforms the single-beam in terms of reducing channel loss by about 8 dB and works well under strong turbulence channel. Furthermore, the MQC-MB reduces the quantum bit error rate (QBER) and improves the secret key rate (SKR) as compared to the single-beam system even though the distance between the sender and receiver increases.