Milos Toth — Page 6

arXiv2014

Localized chemical switching of the charge state of nitrogen-vacancy luminescence centers in diamond

We present a beam-directed chemical technique for controlling the charge states of near-surface luminescence centers in semiconductors. Specifically, we fluorinate the surface of H-terminated diamond by electron beam irradiation in the presence of NF3 vapor. The fluorination treatment acts as a local chemical switch that alters the charge state of nitrogen-vacancy luminescence centers from the neutral to the negative state. The electron beam fluorination process is highly localized and can be used to control the emission spectrum of individual nanodiamonds and surface regions scanned by the electron beam

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2014

Subtractive 3D Printing of Optically Active Diamond Structures

Diamond has recently attracted considerable attention as a promising platform for quantum technologies, photonics and high resolution sensing applications. Here we demonstrate a chemical approach that enables the fabrication of functional diamond structures using gas-mediated electron induced etching. The method achieves chemical etching at room temperature through the dissociation of surface-adsorbed H2O molecules by electron irradiation in a water vapor environment. High throughput, parallel processing is possible by electron flood exposure and the use of an etch mask, while single step, mask-free three dimensional fabrication and iterative editing are achieved using a variable pressure scanning electron microscope. The electron induced chemical etching paves the way to a transformative technology for nanofabrication of diamond and other wide band-gap semiconductors.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗