Single-photon-emitting optical centers in diamond fabricated upon Sn implantation

TL;DR

This study reports the fabrication and detailed optical characterization of Sn-related single-photon emitters in diamond, revealing their potential as new quantum light sources with properties similar to other group-IV defect centers.

Contribution

It introduces a new Sn-related optical center in diamond, characterizes its photophysical properties, and demonstrates its potential for quantum photonics applications.

Findings

Sn-related defects emit at specific wavelengths (593.5-646.7 nm).

Single-photon emission confirmed with antibunching measurements.

Defects exhibit a three-level system with a 6 ns lifetime.

Abstract

The fabrication of luminescent defects in single-crystal diamond upon Sn implantation and annealing is reported. The relevant spectral features of the optical centers (emission peaks at 593.5 nm, 620.3 nm, 630.7 nm and 646.7 nm) are attributed to Sn-related defects through the correlation of their photoluminescence (PL) intensity with the implantation fluence. Single Sn-related defects were identified and characterized through the acquisition of their second-order auto-correlation emission functions, by means of Hanbury-Brown-Twiss interferometry. The investigation of their single-photon emission regime as a function of excitation laser power revealed that Sn-related defects are based on three-level systems with a 6 ns radiative decay lifetime. In a fraction of the studied centers, the observation of a blinking PL emission is indicative of the existence of a dark state. Furthermore, absorption dependence from the polarization of the excitation radiation with about 45 percent contrast was measured. This work shed light on the existence of a new optical center associated with a group-IV impurity in diamond, with similar photo-physical properties to the already well-known Si-V and Ge-V emitters, thus providing results of interest from both the fundamental and applicative points of view.