Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 3, 2026

Quantum State Engineering of Light with Continuous-wave Optical Parametric Oscillators
Published on: May 30, 2014
Experimental quantum key distribution with uncharacterized sources and projective measurements
Abstract:
In theory, quantum key distribution (QKD) can offer information-theoretic secure communication based on the laws of quantum mechanics. However, the vast majority of practical QKD implementations assume the perfect state preparation to ensure security, which is a demanding requirement with current technology. Here, by incorporating the mismatched-basis data, we report an experimental decoy-state QKD demonstration with uncharacterized encoding sources, which only requires that the encoding states are two-dimensional. Furthermore, the measurement operation of the receiver is loosened to be projective measurements. With a rigorous statistical fluctuation analysis, we can distribute secret keys when the transmission distances of the standard fiber link are 101 and 202 km. Our experimental demonstration represents a significant step toward realizing long-distance quantum communication, even with uncharacterized sources and projective measurements.
Related Concept Videos
Propagation of Uncertainty from Random Error
Propagation of Uncertainty from Systematic Error
Estimation of the Physical Quantities
The Quantum-Mechanical Model of an Atom
Extraction: Partition and Distribution Coefficients
For extracting a solute from an aqueous phase into an...
Randomized Experiments
Simple randomization
Simple...

