Experimental generation of multipartite entanglement for continuous variables and its applications in quantum communication

Quantum entanglement shared by more than two partites is the essential bases for developing quantum communication networks and quantum computation. The multipartite entanglement of continuous variables can be generated by distributing or combining squeezed states of light using linear optics. We experimentally obtained a tripartite entangled state of bright optical field by means of a nondegenerate optical parametric amplifier (NOPA) and optical beam-splitters. The NOPA is operated in the state of parametric deamplification by locking the relative phase between the pump laser and the injected seed wave to (2n+1)π, so the generated Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen (EPR) beam for continuous variables is an entangled state of light with the quantum correlation of phase quadratures and the quantum anticorrelation of amplitude quadratures [1]. The output EPR beam consists of two frequency-degenerate optical modes with horizontal and vertical polarizations which are distributed to three parties with two linear beam-splitters. We have theoretically and experimentally demonstrated the three parties are in a tripartite entangled state with three-mode "positionß (amplitude quadrature) correlation and relative "momentum" (phase quadrature) correlation [2]-[4]. The obtained GHZ-like state is a fully inseparable tripartite continuous-variables state violating the three inequalities used for the criterion of the inseparability [5][6]. The controlled dense coding quantum communication is experimentally accomplished by exploiting the tripartite entanglement. The three entangled modes are sent to a sender (Alice), a receiver (Bob) and a controller (Claire), respectively. The information transmission capacity of the quantum channel between Alice and Bob is controlled by Claire. The channel capacity completed under Claire's help is always larger than that without her help. We designed a relatively simple experimental system for entanglement swapping of continuous variables in which two NOPAs operating at deamplification are used for two independent EPR sources. Through a jointly direct measurement of Bell-state the entanglement swapping can be implemented. We point out that the level of entanglement produced from entanglement swapping depends not only on the squeezing parameter of light field but also the large excess noise in the unsqueezed quadrature component.