Scalable Quantum Photonics with Single Color Centers in Silicon Carbide

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates a scalable silicon carbide platform with nanopillar arrays hosting single silicon vacancy centers, achieving high photon collection efficiency and preserving quantum properties, advancing quantum photonics applications.

Contribution

Developed a scalable array of nanopillars with single silicon vacancy centers in 4H-SiC, enabling efficient interfacing and high photon collection for quantum photonics.

Findings

High collection efficiency up to 22 kcounts/s

Preservation of single photon emission and spin polarization

Scalable fabrication process for quantum photonics

Abstract

Silicon carbide is a promising platform for single photon sources, quantum bits (qubits) and nanoscale sensors based on individual color centers. Towards this goal, we develop a scalable array of nanopillars incorporating single silicon vacancy centers in 4H-SiC, readily available for efficient interfacing with free-space objective and lensed-fibers. A commercially obtained substrate is irradiated with 2 MeV electron beams to create vacancies. Subsequent lithographic process forms 800 nm tall nanopillars with 400-1,400 nm diameters. We obtain high collection efficiency, up to 22 kcounts/s optical saturation rates from a single silicon vacancy center, while preserving the single photon emission and the optically induced electron-spin polarization properties. Our study demonstrates silicon carbide as a readily available platform for scalable quantum photonics architecture relying on single photon sources and qubits.