Single Photon Technology for Secure Optical Quantum Communications

摘要

This paper describes a hardware-based solution to network security issues which relies on communication using single photon signals. It allows, for instance, two parties on the network to form a shared cryptographic key, with a guarantee that the key cannot be known by anyone else. Crucial to the implementation and performance of such a secure optical communication system is the development of novel devices for the detection and generation of single photons. Using nanotechnology we have fashioned a new class of semiconductor optoelectronic device for this application. By integrating a layer of quantum dot inside a field-effect transistor we have realized a detector of single photons. We also show that the emission from a single quantum dot can be used as a source of single photons.