Vertical-Substrate MPCVD Epitaxial Nanodiamond Growth

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Quantum Technology
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Color center-containing nanodiamonds are vital for quantum technologies and biological applications.
• Optimizing nanodiamond growth with color centers via traditional methods is time-consuming and inefficient.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a rapid method for exploring the parameter space in nanodiamond growth.
• To identify optimal conditions for producing high-quality, single-crystal nanodiamonds with optically active color centers.

Main Methods:

• Implemented a vertical stage-substrate microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique.
• Utilized the continuous variation of temperature, plasma density, and atomic hydrogen density along the vertical axis.

Main Results:

• Successfully identified growth parameters yielding single-crystal nanodiamonds as small as 10 nm.
• Produced optically active silicon-vacancy (Si-V) color centers in nanoparticles with 75 nm diameters.
• Demonstrated a method for doping nanodiamonds without ion irradiation damage.

Conclusions:

• The vertical CVD geometry significantly accelerates the optimization of nanodiamond growth conditions.
• This technique enables efficient production of high-quality nanodiamonds with desirable color centers for advanced applications.
• The method offers a versatile platform for incorporating various dopants into nanodiamonds.