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Demonstration of a quantum teleportation network for continuous variables

Abstract

Quantum teleportation1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 involves the transportation of an unknown quantum state from one location to another, without physical transfer of the information carrier. Although quantum teleportation is a naturally bipartite process, it can be extended to a multipartite protocol known as a quantum teleportation network9. In such a network, entanglement is shared between three or more parties. For the case of three parties (a tripartite network), teleportation of a quantum state can occur between any pair, but only with the assistance of the third party. Multipartite quantum protocols are expected to form fundamental components for larger-scale quantum communication and computation10,11. Here we report the experimental realization of a tripartite quantum teleportation network for quantum states of continuous variables (electromagnetic field modes). We demonstrate teleportation of a coherent state between three different pairs in the network, unambiguously demonstrating its tripartite character.

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Figure 1: The experimental set-up for quantum teleportation from Alice to Bob under the control of Claire.
Figure 2: Quantum teleportation from Alice to Bob under the control of Claire.
Figure 3: Dependence of the fidelities on the controller's gain.

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Acknowledgements

This work was partly supported by the MEXT and the MPHPT of Japan, and the Research Foundation for Opto-Science and Technology.

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Correspondence to Akira Furusawa.

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The authors declare that they have no competing financial interests.

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Yonezawa, H., Aoki, T. & Furusawa, A. Demonstration of a quantum teleportation network for continuous variables. Nature 431, 430–433 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature02858

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