Fabrication and Photoluminescence Studies of Tin-Vacancy Centers in Chemical Vapor Deposition Diamond

Abstract

Group IV color centers in diamond are promising single-photon emitters for quantum information processing and networking. Among them, the tin-vacancy (SnV) center stands out due to its long spin coherence times at cryogenic temperatures above 1 K. While SnV centers have been realized using various fabrication routes, their in situ formation via microwave plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (MW PE CVD) remains relatively unexplored. In this study, SnV centers, identified by a zero-phonon line (ZPL) near 620 nm, were synthesized in nanocrystalline diamond and free-standing microcrystalline diamond using tin oxide (SnO2) as a dopant source at substrate temperatures of 750 degrees C and 850 degrees C. Photoluminescence measurements reveal that lowering the substrate temperature enhances both the ZPL intensity and spatial uniformity of SnV centers. These results highlight substrate temperature as a key parameter for controlling SnV incorporation during MW PE CVD growth and provide insights into optimizing fabrication strategies for diamond-based quantum technologies.