Symmetrical clock synchronization with time-correlated photon pairs

We demonstrate a point-to-point clock synchronization protocol based on bidirectionally exchanging photons produced in spontaneous parametric down conversion. The technique exploits tight timing correlations between photon pairs to achieve a precision of 51 ps in 100 s with count rates of order 200...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied physics letters 2019-03, Vol.114 (10)
Main Authors: Lee, Jianwei, Shen, Lijiong, Cerè, Alessandro, Troupe, James, Lamas-Linares, Antia, Kurtsiefer, Christian
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Applied physics
Bell's inequality
Clock synchronization
Navigation satellites
Photons
Time correlation functions
Time synchronization
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Summary:We demonstrate a point-to-point clock synchronization protocol based on bidirectionally exchanging photons produced in spontaneous parametric down conversion. The technique exploits tight timing correlations between photon pairs to achieve a precision of 51 ps in 100 s with count rates of order 200 s−1. The protocol is distance independent, is secure against symmetric delay attacks, and provides a natural complement to techniques based on Global Navigation Satellite Systems. The protocol works with mobile parties and can be augmented to provide authentication of the timing signal via a Bell inequality check.
ISSN:0003-6951
1077-3118
DOI:10.1063/1.5086493