Martin Henry
Point defects in the solid state for quantum technology.
Atom-sized defects in solid state crystalline matrices, such as phosphorus dopants in silicon, NV centres in diamond, and isoelectronic centres of various types are promising systems for quantum information and technology since they can leverage off many decades of development in the semiconductor industry in terms of crystalline perfection of starting materials, processing techniques etc. These defects can show a range of ground and excited state configurations including single electrons or holes, excitons, biexcitons and charged excitons. Coupling between electronic and nuclear degrees of freedom enables optical control of nuclear states and in certain configurations nuclear spins have the potential for high-temperature operation. Exploration of multi-atom point defects offer another interesting avenue for research in this exciting topic.