Integration of bright color centers into arrays of silicon carbide nanopillars

Abstract

Silicon carbide (SiC) is a wide-bandgap semiconductor combining mature fabrication processes with the ability to host optically active point defects, called color centers, making it ideal for quantum technologies. This study focuses on silicon vacancy defects in 4H-SiC, integrated into nanopillar arrays fabricated via ion implantation, e-beam lithography, and reactive ion etching. SiC nanopillars with a height of 1.4 μm are formed and arrays with varying pillar diameters and spacings are obtained. Cathodoluminescence measurements at 80 K reveal a two to four times improvement in light collection efficiency from the defects compared to unstructured SiC. The cathodoluminescence intensity increases with a smaller pillar spacing and a larger diameter. These findings demonstrate the potential of SiC nanopillar arrays as scalable platforms for enhancing quantum photonic device performance.