We show how to generate, encode, transmit and detect single photons. By using single photons we can address two of the more challenging problems that communication engineers face nowadays: capacity and security. Indeed, by decreasing the number of photons used to encode each bit, we can efficiently explore the full capacity to carry information of optical fibers, and we can guarantee privacy at the physical layer. We present results for single and entangled photon generation. We encode information in the photons polarization and after transmission we retrieve that information. We discuss the impact of fiber birefringence on the photons polarization.

Date Published: 22 August 2014
PDF: 10 pages
Proc. SPIE 9286, Second International Conference on Applications of Optics and Photonics, 92861B (22 August 2014); doi: 10.1117/12.2063766

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 9286:
Second International Conference on Applications of Optics and Photonics
Manuel Filipe P. C. Martins Costa; Rogério Nunes Nogueira, Editor(s)