Gaussian Quantum Integrated Sensing and Communication

Abstract

We consider a quantum integrated sensing and communication problem over an optical link in which a low-power transmitter simultaneously communicates with a receiver and identifies the range of a defect producing a backscattered signal. We model the system as a lossy thermal-noise bosonic channel, in which the target, modeled as a beamsplitter, affects the timing of the backscattered signal through its location. Motivated by the envisioned deployment of entanglement-enabled quantum networks, we develop two protocols that allow the transmitter to leverage shared Gaussian entanglement, in the form of independent two-mode squeezed vacuum states or coupled three-mode squeezed vacuum states, to assist both sensing and communication. Since entanglement is known to enhance sensing, as demonstrated in quantum illumination, and to increase communication rates through entanglement-assisted communication, the transmitter faces a trade-off in allocating its entanglement resources between the two tasks. Our main results characterize these trade-offs under the proposed protocols in terms of achievable communication rate/sensing error-exponent regions, which outperform time-sharing schemes and demonstrate a quantum advantage.