Gate‐Tuneable Single‐Photon Emitters in WSe 2 Monolayer Created via AFM Nanoindentation on Rigid SiO 2 /Si Substrates

Single‐photon emitters (SPEs) hosted by two‐dimensional (2D) semiconducting materials are envisioned for next‐generation quantum applications. However, SPE creation in 2D semiconductors on rigid substrates like SiO 2 /Si via nanoindentation is a technological gap, critical for interfacing SPEs with photonic circuits/cavities. Here, we report a protocol for deterministically creating SPEs in monolayer WSe 2 on SiO 2 /Si substrates using a sharp diamond AFM (atomic force microscope) tip. A displacement‐controlled indentation process is developed, allowing indent depths > 150 nm necessary for creating SPEs. Sharp defect peaks (∼200 µeV) are observed in cryogenic (4 K) photoluminescence (PL) spectrum at the nanoindented sites and are stable up to ∼120 K. 76% of sites exhibit sharp defect‐bound peaks confirmed by power‐dependent, temperature‐dependent, and time‐resolved PL (TRPL). AFM and PL mapping link these peaks to the indent periphery. The peaks show sub‐linewidth spectral jitter, no blinking, and single‐photon nature in second‐order autocorrelation (g ( 2 ) ) measurements. SPEs can be switched on or off and classical background emission suppressed by electrical gating. Gate‐voltage dependent TRPL shows that SPE dynamics are electrically tuneable, pointing the way toward high‐purity SPEs. The protocol is also extended to other 2D materials and photonic‐circuit compatible substrates, advancing the scalable integration of 2D semiconductor‐based SPEs.