All Abstracts | Poster Abstracts | Talk Abstracts

Quantum optics experiments at Earth-orbital scales and beyond

David Rideout, University of California, San Diego

(Session 9c : Friday from 4:30pm - 5:00pm)

A number of national and international entities are racing to set up satellite-based quantum communication infrastructure, which would allow the construction of a global network for quantum key distribution. The construction of such a network poses numerous technological challenges, considering that quantum entanglement has not yet been demonstrated at such scales. I will provide some details of a Canadian Space Agency funded mission to demonstrate quantum entanglement between the Earth's surface and Low Earth Orbit, and sketch some tests of fundamental physics which could be enabled by such satellites, ranging from verification of quantum mechanics to tests of spacetime discreteness from quantum gravity.