Single-photon avalanche diodes(SPADs)are the most widespread commercial solution for single-photon counting in quantum key distribution applications.However,the secondary photon emission that arises from the avalanche...Single-photon avalanche diodes(SPADs)are the most widespread commercial solution for single-photon counting in quantum key distribution applications.However,the secondary photon emission that arises from the avalanche of charge carriers that occurs during the detection of a photon may be exploited by an eavesdropper to gain information without inducing errors in the transmission key.In this paper,we characterize such backflash light in gated InGaAs/InP SPADs and discuss its spectral and temporal characterization for different detector models and different operating parameters.We qualitatively bound the maximum information leakage due to backflash light and propose solutions for preventing such leakage.展开更多
基金funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020the EMPIR and EMRP Participating States in the contexts of the projects EXL02 SIQUTE and 14IND05 MIQC2,respectivelysupport from FIRB Project No.D11J11000450001 funded by MIUR and from the NATO SPS Project 984397.
文摘Single-photon avalanche diodes(SPADs)are the most widespread commercial solution for single-photon counting in quantum key distribution applications.However,the secondary photon emission that arises from the avalanche of charge carriers that occurs during the detection of a photon may be exploited by an eavesdropper to gain information without inducing errors in the transmission key.In this paper,we characterize such backflash light in gated InGaAs/InP SPADs and discuss its spectral and temporal characterization for different detector models and different operating parameters.We qualitatively bound the maximum information leakage due to backflash light and propose solutions for preventing such leakage.
