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SYDD: Defect centers in diamond for applications in quantum optics and nanophotonics

SYDD 1: Defect centers in diamond for applications in quantum optics and nanophotonics I

SYDD 1.2: Invited Talk

Friday, March 6, 2009, 11:00–11:30, Audi-B

Fabrication strategies for diamond based quantum devices — •Steven Prawer — University of Melbourne, School of Physics, Parkville, Victoria, 3010, Australia

We aim to unlock the enormous potential of the weird quantum world for a new generation of information processing devices which address important and unsolved problems in secure communications, high performance computing, data storage, simulation and imaging. Surprisingly, single crystal diamond, long known for its allure as a gemstone, displays unique quantum properties and these make it ideal for the fabrication of critical components which will be the building blocks of this new quantum technology. Indeed diamond is an ideal material for use in the fabrication of (i) single photon sources for quantum communications, (ii) photonic platforms for the investigation of quantum entanglement in solid state systems (iii) optical regenerators and non-linear quantum gates and (iv) room temperature photonic based magnetometers.

But the same properties that make diamond so attractive for these applications also make it very hard to fabricate into devices. In this talk, I will describe the methods we have developed for fabricating diamond nanocrystals with desired properties and sculpting mirrors, waveguides and cavities directly into single crystal diamond by using a combination of implantation, focused ion beam milling and electrochemical etching.

The first devices based on these technologies are entering the market for applications in ultrasecure communications. But the future holds even more exciting prospects for diamond devices in quantum computing and nanoscale imaging of biological processes in real time.