title: Structural Attributes and Photodynamics of Visible Spectrum Quantum Emitters in Hexagonal Boron Nitride.
abstract: Newly discovered van der Waals materials like MoS2, WSe2, hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN), and recently C2N have sparked intensive research to unveil the quantum behavior associated with their 2D structure. Of great interest are 2D materials that host single quantum emitters. h-BN, with a band gap of 5.95 eV, has been shown to host single quantum emitters which are stable at room temperature in the UV and visible spectral range. In this paper we investigate correlations between h-BN structural features and emitter location from bulk down to the monolayer at room temperature. We demonstrate that chemical etching and ion irradiation can generate emitters in h-BN. We analyze the emitters' spectral features and show that they are dominated by the interaction of their electronic transition with a single Raman active mode of h-BN. Photodynamics analysis reveals diverse rates between the electronic states of the emitter. The emitters show excellent photo stability even under ambient conditions and in monolayers. Comparing the excitation polarization between different emitters unveils a connection between defect orientation and the h-BN hexagonal structure. The sharp spectral features, color diversity, room-temperature stability, long-lived metastable states, ease of fabrication, proximity of the emitters to the environment, outstanding chemical stability, and biocompatibility of h-BN provide a completely new class of systems that can be used for sensing and quantum photonics applications.
authors.affiliation: 3. Physikalisches Institut, Universität Stuttgart , Pfaffenwaldring 57, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.|Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research , Heisenbergstr. 1, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Nathan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Chejanovsky
authors.affiliation: 3. Physikalisches Institut, Universität Stuttgart , Pfaffenwaldring 57, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Mohammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rezai
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research , Heisenbergstr. 1, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Federico
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Paolucci
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research , Heisenbergstr. 1, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Youngwook
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: 3. Physikalisches Institut, Universität Stuttgart , Pfaffenwaldring 57, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Torsten
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Rendler
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research , Heisenbergstr. 1, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Wafa
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Rouabeh
authors.affiliation: 3. Physikalisches Institut, Universität Stuttgart , Pfaffenwaldring 57, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Felipe
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fávaro de Oliveira
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research , Heisenbergstr. 1, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Herlinger
authors.affiliation: 3. Physikalisches Institut, Universität Stuttgart , Pfaffenwaldring 57, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Andrej
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Denisenko
authors.affiliation: 3. Physikalisches Institut, Universität Stuttgart , Pfaffenwaldring 57, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Sen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: 3. Physikalisches Institut, Universität Stuttgart , Pfaffenwaldring 57, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.|Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research , Heisenbergstr. 1, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Ilja
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gerhardt
authors.affiliation: 3. Physikalisches Institut, Universität Stuttgart , Pfaffenwaldring 57, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Amit
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Finkler
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research , Heisenbergstr. 1, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Jurgen H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Smet
authors.affiliation: 3. Physikalisches Institut, Universität Stuttgart , Pfaffenwaldring 57, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.|Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research , Heisenbergstr. 1, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Jörg
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wrachtrup
keywords: Single quantum emitters; hexagonal boron-nitride; van der Waals materials