2×N twin-field quantum key distribution network configuration based on polarization, wavelength, and time division multiplexing

Abstract

Developing quantum key distribution (QKD) has been recently directed toward distance extension and network expansion for real-world secure communications. Considering a recent report on a quantum communication network over 4,600 km, it seems that QKD networks using conventional protocols have been sufficiently studied. However, although the twin-field QKD (TF-QKD) proposed for long-distance QKD has been studied deeply enough to succeed the demonstrations over 428- and 511-km deployed fibers, TF-QKD networks have been verified only for a ring network. In this work, we propose a star topological 2 × N TF-QKD network scheme, where the coherence maintenance issue, being the primary obstacle to implementing TF-QKD, can be minimized by the automatic mode-matching feature of the Sagnac-based plug-and-play architecture. A lower number of active controllers is required for our scheme in comparison with one-way TF-QKD networks. Moreover, our scheme adopts a cost-effective configuration that requires only a single pair of single-photon detectors for the entire network system. We conducted a proof-of-concept experiment over a 50-km fiber successfully, achieving an average secret key rate of 1.31 × 10−4bit per pulse (1.52 bit per second) with the finite-size effect.