Processing of Photonic Crystal Nanocavity for Quantum Information in Diamond

TL;DR

This paper reviews the methods for fabricating photonic crystal nanocavities in diamond, emphasizing FIB milling and optical characterization, to advance quantum information applications with diamond-based spintronics.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of fabrication techniques, simulation predictions, and characterization methods for diamond photonic crystals, highlighting recent advances and challenges.

Findings

Optimized FIB milling strategies for diamond nanostructures

Simulation-based design parameters for photonic crystal cavities

Successful optical characterization of fabricated structures

Abstract

The realization of photonic crystals (PC) in diamond is of major importance for the entire field of spintronics based on fluorescent centers in diamond. The processing steps for the case of diamond differ from those commonly used, due to the extreme chemical and mechanical properties of this material. The present work summarizes the state of the art in the realization of PC's in diamond. It is based on the creation of a free standing diamond membrane into which the desired nano-sized patterns are milled by the use of Focused-Ion-Beam (FIB). The optimal fabrication-oriented structure parameters are predicted by simulations. The milling strategies, the method of formation the diamond membrane, recipes for dielectric material-manipulation in FIB and optical characterization constraints are discussed in conjunction with their implication on PC cavity design. The thus produced structures are characterized via confocal photoluminescence.