ABSTRACT Color centers in silicon have great potential as single photon sources for quantum technologies. Some of them – like the T center – also possess optically‐active spins that enable spin‐photon interfaces for generating entangled photons and multi‐spin registers. This paper explores the generation of several types of color centers in silicon for mass‐manufacturable silicon‐on‐insulator quantum devices. We investigate how different processes in the device development affect the presence of the quantum emitters, including thermal annealing and fabrication steps for optical nanostructures. The study reveals coupled formation dynamics between different color centers, identifies optimal parameters for annealing processes, and reports on the sensitivity to annealing duration and nanofabrication procedures for photonic integrated circuits. Furthermore, we observe signals from unidentified color centers, which we suggest originate from the CN center.
Snedker-Nielsen et al. (Fri,) studied this question.