From South Korea to Slovakia: Prof. Ham Shares Insights on Quantum Communication and Sensing
Last week, the Institute of Physics of the Slovak Academy of Sciences had the pleasure of hosting Prof. Byoung S. Ham from the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, South Korea, for two fascinating talks.
On Tuesday, July 8, Prof. Ham delivered a seminar titled Unconditionally secured MZI-based communication protocol, where he explored a new approach to quantum key distribution (QKD) that aims for unconditional security, even when practical limitations like detector inefficiencies and channel losses come into play. He introduced a clever protocol based on coherence optics and a round-trip Mach-Zehnder interferometer setup, where the randomness of beam-splitter paths ensures that any eavesdropping attempt leaves detectable traces.
The highlight of his visit was the Colloquium on Wednesday, July 9, entitled Coherently excited superresolution for quantum sensing. Here, Prof. Ham presented an innovative method for quantum sensing, using coherently driven quantum erasures and intensity-correlation measurements. His approach promises macroscopic superresolution and improved phase sensitivity, offering practical advantages over both classical sensing techniques and traditional quantum methods. He shared both theoretical insights and experimental results, including a case study showing how this technique can outperform conventional grating-based wavelength meters.
Beyond the scientific talks, Prof. Ham’s visit was a fantastic opportunity for informal discussions and exploring future collaborations between researchers from Slovakia and South Korea. His engaging style and innovative ideas sparked lively conversations and new connections among colleagues and students alike. We look forward to continuing this discussion and building on the exciting topics shared during his visit!
Gallery:
