Dresden 2026 – scientific programme

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HL: Fachverband Halbleiterphysik

HL 20: Poster I

HL 20.58: Poster

Tuesday, March 10, 2026, 18:00–20:00, P1

Creation and characterization of color centers in hexagonal Boron Nitride — •Dennis Heinz Bruno Mors^{1, 2}, Iris Niehues¹, and Daniel Wigger³ — ¹Institute of Physics, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany — ²Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Twente, 7522 NB Enschede, Netherlands — ³Department of Physics, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany

Color centers (CCs) in hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) are promising candidates for stable and bright quantum light sources, despite their unknown origin due to their single-photon emission properties even at room temperature. To explore their potential, we investigate various material sources for their ability to host CCs. We employ mechanical exfoliation to reduce the thickness of bulk crystals to a few layers, resulting in thin hBN flakes that are then transferred onto Si or SiO₂ samples. To enhance the yield of CCs, we thermally anneal the hBN. We then examine our samples using confocal photoluminescence to identify the CCs in the host crystal. Additionally, we utilize a scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscope (sSNOM) to study the photoluminescence (PL) emission characteristics of these quantum emitters. By using a sharp metallic tip, we concentrate the illuminating light field into a nanofocus, enabling us to achieve nanoscale resolution beyond the diffraction limit.[1]

[1] I. Niehues et al., Nanophotonics 2025, 14(3), 335-342.

Keywords: quantum light sources; single-photon emission; color centers; hBN