High-Speed Quantum Random Number Generation Using CMOS Photon Counting Detectors

Optical quantum random number generators (QRNGs) are a special class of physical random data sources, whose randomness is established on elementary quantum optics processes. We present a QRNG based on a CMOS chip which overcomes the limitations of the commonly used optical QRNG and which achieves a random bit generation rate up to 200 Mb/s. The CMOS chip is based on an array of single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs) and digital counters. We prove the absolute randomness of the generated random data through statistical test suites and even more stringent correlation and bias tests applied to 32 Gbit streams. The QRNG passes all tests; hence, it proves to be one of the fastest and more reliable CMOS optical QRNGs currently available.