Asynchronous quantum repeater using multiple quantum memory.

Abstract

A full-fledged quantum network relies on the formation of entangled links between remote location with the help of quantum repeaters. The famous Duan-Lukin-Cirac-Zoller quantum repeater protocol is based on long distance single-photon interference (SPI), which not only requires high phase stability but also cannot generate maximally entangled state. Here, we propose a quantum repeater protocol using the idea of post-matching, which retains the same efficiency as the SPI protocol, reduces the phase-stability requirement and can generate maximally entangled state in principle. We also outline an implementation of our scheme based on the Kerr nonlinear resonator. Numerical simulations show that our protocol has its superiority by comparing with existing protocols under a generic noise model and show the feasibility of building a large-scale quantum communication network with our scheme. We believe our work represents a crucial step towards the construction of a fully-connected quantum network.