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We propose an improved two-way continuous-variable quantum key distribution (CV QKD) protocol by adding proper random noise on the receiver's homodyne detection, the security of which is analysed against general collective attacks. The simulation result under the collective entangling cloner attack indicates that despite the correlation between two-way channels decreasing the secret key rate relative to the uncorrelated channels slightly, the performance of the two-way protocol is still far beyond that of the one-way protocols. Importantly, the added noise in detection is beneficial for the secret key rate and the tolerable excess noise of this two-way protocol. With the reasonable reconciliation efficiency of 90%, the two-way CV QKD with added noise allows the distribution of secret keys over 60 km fibre distance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The time evolution of genuine multipartite entanglement is numerically studied in a model many-spin system decohered by a structured spin bath. It is found that multipartite entanglement can be more persistent than the bipartite entanglement and can even evolve into a specific constant under certain conditions. Besides, multipartite entanglement sudden death and sudden birth are observed. It is shown that the randomness of the coupling strength and connectivity between the spins in the environment will suppress these birth and death phenomena. Furthermore, the initial state of the central system plays a significant role in determining multipartite entanglement dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a systematic analysis to explain the observed magnetic resonance spectrum with three or five peaks spaced at Rabi frequency when the metastable 3He atoms are probed with a transverse circularly or linearly polarized 1083 nm laser beam, respectively. The resonance signals are generated in the ground state of 3He atoms, dressed by a resonant magnetic field, and transferred to the metastable state by collisions. The triplet spectrum is thought to be the result of the linear coupling between the metastable state and the ground state, while the quintuplet is thought to be that of the nonlinear coupling, and indicates that higher-order atomic polarization is created during the atomic collisions. More features of the magnetic resonance signals are investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The shot-noise unit (SNU) is a crucial factor for the practical security of a continuous-variable quantum key distribution system. In the most widely used experimental scheme, the SNU should be calibrated first and acts as a constant during the key distribution. However, the SNU of a practical system is dependent on the various parameters of the local oscillator (LO), which can be controlled by the eavesdropper in the open channel. In this paper, we report a quantum hacking method to control the practical SNU by using the limited compensation rate of the polarization compensation. Since the compensation is only based on of the polarization measurement results of part of LO pulses, the polarization of other unmeasured pulses may not be compensated correctly, which can be utilized by the eavesdropper to control the practical SNU. The simulation and experiment results indicate that the practical SNU can be controlled by the eavesdropper. Thus, the eavesdropper can use the fact that the practical SNU is no longer equals to the calibrated one to control the excess noise and final key rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyze the security of the two-way continuous-variable quantum key distribution protocol in reverse reconciliation against general two-mode attacks, which represent all accessible attacks at fixed channel parameters. Rather than against one specific attack model, the expression of secret key rates of the two-way protocol are derived against all accessible attack models. It is found that there is an optimal two-mode attack to minimize the performance of the protocol in terms of both secret key rates and maximal transmission distances. We identify the optimal two-mode attack, give the specific attack model of the optimal two-mode attack and show the performance of the two-way protocol against the optimal two-mode attack. Even under the optimal two-mode attack, the performances of two-way protocol are still better than the corresponding one-way protocol, which shows the advantage of making double use of the quantum channel and the potential of long-distance secure communication using a two-way protocol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We suggest a multiatom cavity quantum electrodynamics system for the detection of a weak magnetic field, based on Faraday rotation with intracavity electromagnetically induced transparency. Our study demonstrates that the collective coupling between the cavity modes and the atomic ensemble can be used to improve the sensitivity. With single-probe photon input, the sensitivity is inversely proportional to the number of atoms, and a sensitivity of 2.45 nT Hz–1/2 could be attained. With multiphoton measurement, our numerical calculations show that the magnetic field sensitivity can be improved to 105.6 aT Hz–1/2 with realistic experimental conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the security of reverse reconciliation two-way continuous-variable quantum key distribution with source noise at both legitimate sides. Because the source noise originates from imperfect devices, we ascribe it to the legitimate sides rather than the eavesdropper. The trusted model consists of a thermal noise injected into a beam splitter. The expressions of secret key rate are derived against collective entangling cloner attacks for homodyne and heterodyne detections. Simulation results show that by applying the trusted model, the security bound of the reverse reconciliation two-way protocols can be tightened, while the advantage over one-way protocols still maintains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Entanglement dynamics for a couple of two-level atoms interacting with independent structured reservoirs is studied using a non-perturbative approach. It is shown that the revival of atom entanglement is not necessarily accompanied by the sudden death of reservoir entanglement, and vice versa. In fact, atom entanglement can revive before, simultaneously or even after the disentanglement of reservoirs. Using a novel method based on the population analysis for the excited atomic state, we present the quantitative criteria for the revival and death phenomena. To give a more physically intuitive insight, the quasimode Hamiltonian method is applied. Our quantitative analysis is helpful for the practical engineering of entanglement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of Rayleigh backscattering on a quantum bit error rate (QBER) is investigated in a two-way quantum key distribution (QKD) system without using a storage line. A modified two-way QKD system is proposed, in which the information is alternately encoded on the different wavelengths for eliminating the Rayleigh backscattering and increasing the key rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]