Würth, Michael

Date:    Wednesday, August 16, 2023 
Time:    16:00
Place:    ETH Campus Hönggerberg, HPF G 6
Hosts:    Christoph Hellings

Microwave Quantum Radar

Michael Würth –  Technical University of Munich, Germany

Abstract: Quantum radar is an emerging remote-sensing technique that promises to outperform any classical radar. Conceptionally equivalent to the quantum illumination (QI) protocol in quantum optics, quantum radar relies on non-classical correlations in Gaussian states. The task is to test for the presence of a low-reflectivity object embedded in a bright thermal background. One mode of the entangled resource state is sent as a probe, while another mode is preserved for a joint detection step. Fascinatingly, QI is robust against entanglement-breaking background noise, which results in enhanced performance over the ideal classical reference scheme based on coherent-state transmission. In this talk, an overview of quantum radar is given. First, the quantum radar protocol is introduced, and the predicted quantum advantage is discussed. The potential of this protocol as a "radar" is analyzed, and recent experimental advances are presented.