Pulse shape optimization against Doppler shifts and delays in optical quantum communication

Abstract

High relative velocities and large distances in space-based quantum communication with satellites in lower earth orbits can lead to significant Doppler shifts and delays of the signal impairing the achievable performance if uncorrected. We analyze the influence of systematic and stochastic Doppler shift and delay in the specific case of a continuous variable quantum key distribution (CV-QKD) protocol and identify the generalized correlation function, the ambiguity function, as a decisive measure of performance loss. Investigating the generalized correlations as well as private capacity bounds for specific choices of spectral amplitude shape (Gaussian, single- and double-sided Lorentzian), we find that this choice has a significant impact on the robustness of the quantum communication protocol to spectral and temporal synchronization errors. We conclude that optimizing the pulse shape can be a building block in the resilient design of quantum network infrastructure.