Non-radiative energy transfer between boron vacancies in hexagonal boron nitride and other 2D materials

TL;DR

This paper investigates non-radiative F"orster resonance energy transfer between boron vacancies in hexagonal boron nitride and other 2D materials, revealing the transfer's dependence on layer thickness and implications for ultra-thin quantum sensors.

Contribution

It provides the first experimental analysis of FRET involving boron vacancies in hBN and explores their potential in ultra-thin quantum sensing applications.

Findings

FRET rate is negligible for hBN layers thicker than 3 nm.

Intrinsic radiative decay rate of $V_B^-$ defects is experimentally determined.

Potential for integrating $V_B^-$ centers into ultra-thin quantum sensors.

Abstract

Boron vacancies ($V_B^-$) in hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) have emerged as a promising platform for two-dimensional quantum sensors capable of operating at atomic-scale proximity. However, the mechanisms responsible for photoluminescence quenching in thin hBN sensing layers when placed in contact with absorptive materials remain largely unexplored. In this Letter, we investigate non-radiative F\"orster resonance energy transfer (FRET) between $V_B^-$ centers and either monolayer graphene or 2D semiconductors. Strikingly, we find that the FRET rate is negligible for hBN sensing layers thicker than 3 nm, highlighting the potential of $V_B^-$ centers for integration into ultra-thin quantum sensors within van der Waals heterostructures. Furthermore, we experimentally extract the intrinsic radiative decay rate of $V_B^-$ defects.