Composable finite-size effects in free-space continuous-variable quantum-key-distribution systems

Abstract

Free-space channels provide the possibility of establishing continuous-variable quantum key distribution in global communication networks. However, the fluctuating nature of transmissivity in these channels introduces an extra noise which reduces the achievable secret key rate. We consider two classical postprocessing strategies, postselection of high-transmissivity data and data clusterization, to reduce the fluctuation-induced noise of the channel. We undertake the investigation of such strategies utilizing a composable security proof in a realistic finite-size regime against both collective and individual attacks. We also present an efficient parameter estimation approach to estimate the effective Gaussian parameters over the postselected data or the clustered data. Although the composable finite-size effects become more significant with the postselection and clusterization both reducing the size of the data, our results show that these strategies are still able to enhance the finite-size key rate against both individual and collective attacks with a remarkable improvement against collective attacks, even moving the protocol from an insecure regime to a secure regime under certain conditions.