Telecom O-Band Quantum Dots Fabricated by Droplet Etching

Spitzer, Nikolai; Kersting, Elias; Grell, Meret; Kohminaei, Danial; Schmidt, Marcel; Bart, Nikolai; Wieck, Andreas D.; Ludwig, Arne

doi:10.3390/cryst14121014

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Open AccessArticle

Telecom O-Band Quantum Dots Fabricated by Droplet Etching

by

Nikolai Spitzer

^*

,

Elias Kersting

,

Meret Grell

,

Danial Kohminaei

,

Marcel Schmidt

,

Nikolai Bart

,

Andreas D. Wieck

and

Arne Ludwig

^*

Lehrstuhl für Angewandte Festkörperphysik, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universitätsstraße 150, 44801 Bochum, Germany

^*

Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Crystals 2024, 14(12), 1014; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14121014

Submission received: 22 October 2024 / Revised: 13 November 2024 / Accepted: 19 November 2024 / Published: 22 November 2024

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Crystal Growth: Pioneering Materials for Tomorrow's Technologies)

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Abstract

We present a novel growth technique for fabricating low-density InAs/GaAs quantum dots that emit in the telecom O-band. This method combines local droplet etching on GaAs surfaces using gallium with Stranski–Krastanov growth initiated by InAs deposition. Quantum dots nucleate directly within nanoholes, avoiding the critical layer thickness typical of standard InAs Stranski–Krastanov growth, resulting in larger, low-density quantum dots. InGaAs strain reduction layers further redshift the emission into and beyond the telecom O-band. Photoluminescence spectra show a small energy difference between ground and excited states, while capacitance-voltage spectroscopy reveal small Coulomb blockade energy. Atomic force microscopy analysis indicates that quantum dots formed within nanoholes exhibit a larger volume compared to standard quantum dots. Additionally, these nanohole nucleated quantum dots require less indium to achieve O-band emission and demonstrate comparable or even better homogeneity, as indicated by the full-width at half-maximum. This improved homogeneity, low density, and increased size make these quantum dots particularly suitable for single-photon sources in quantum communication applications.

Keywords: molecular beam epitaxy; quantum dots; local droplet etching; telecom O-band; photoluminescence spectroscopy; atomic force microscopy

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MDPI and ACS Style

Spitzer, N.; Kersting, E.; Grell, M.; Kohminaei, D.; Schmidt, M.; Bart, N.; Wieck, A.D.; Ludwig, A. Telecom O-Band Quantum Dots Fabricated by Droplet Etching. Crystals 2024, 14, 1014. https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14121014

AMA Style

Spitzer N, Kersting E, Grell M, Kohminaei D, Schmidt M, Bart N, Wieck AD, Ludwig A. Telecom O-Band Quantum Dots Fabricated by Droplet Etching. Crystals. 2024; 14(12):1014. https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14121014

Chicago/Turabian Style

Spitzer, Nikolai, Elias Kersting, Meret Grell, Danial Kohminaei, Marcel Schmidt, Nikolai Bart, Andreas D. Wieck, and Arne Ludwig. 2024. "Telecom O-Band Quantum Dots Fabricated by Droplet Etching" Crystals 14, no. 12: 1014. https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14121014

APA Style

Spitzer, N., Kersting, E., Grell, M., Kohminaei, D., Schmidt, M., Bart, N., Wieck, A. D., & Ludwig, A. (2024). Telecom O-Band Quantum Dots Fabricated by Droplet Etching. Crystals, 14(12), 1014. https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14121014

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Telecom O-Band Quantum Dots Fabricated by Droplet Etching

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