The impact of strain on GeV color centers in diamond

Abstract

Diamond color centers are considered excellent candidates for applications in quantum information processing, biosensors, and magnetometry.[1,2,3] Although the NV- center is the most researched color center in diamond, the GeV center has the potential of being a superior candidate as a quantum emitter. Interest in the GeV center and other group IV elements like SiV arises mainly from their intense zero-phonon line and small phonon sideband.[2,3] Despite a strong resemblance between the GeV center and the SiV center, GeV exhibits higher quantum photoluminescence efficiency.[4] However, further research is needed for the characterization of the GeV center under experimental conditions. Ab initio calculations provide valuable insights into the electronic energy levels of the color center under varying conditions such as strain and color center concentration. In this work, we aim to elucidate the effect of strain and defect charging on the zero-phonon line (ZPL).