EAGER: Quantum Manufacturing: Supporting Future Quantum Applications by Developing a Robust, Scalable Process to Create Diamond Nitrogen-Vacancy Center Qubits

EAGER：量子制造：通过开发稳健、可扩展的工艺来创建钻石氮空位中心量子位，支持未来的量子应用

• 批准号: 2242049
• 负责人: April Brown
• 金额: $ 29.97万
• 依托单位: Duke University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-01-01 至 2024-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2242049&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: EAGER; Quantum; Manufacturing; Supporting; Future

This EArly-concept Grant for Exploratory Research (EAGER) Quantum Manufacturing award will support innovative research to demonstrate a new approach and reveal new knowledge on the creation of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) color centers in diamond for quantum bit implementation. Quantum information applications, such as quantum computing, communications, and sensing, rely on the implementation of reproducible and robust quantum bits, or qubits. Numerous materials and systems have been identified to create qubits, but diamond is of particular interest because its NV centers are very stable and provide relatively long room temperature coherence times. However, the creation of color centers in wide -bandgap semiconductors, such as diamond, is challenging. Qubit fabrication in these materials has been primarily based on conventional microelectronics manufacturing techniques. While these approaches have provided a basis for diamond-based qubit system studies, conventional microelectronic processing techniques are not optimal for color center manufacturing. To change this, the research will utilize a robust and scalable diamond growth technique coupled with carbon nanotube electron beam irradiation to create the defects. While NV centers in diamond have been shown to be efficacious for qubit realization, current manufacturing processes remain challenging. Most implementations rely on the post- processing identification of effective qubits created using ion implantation and annealing. Specific manufacturing challenges relate to the difficulties in balancing defect center creation and diamond defect and strain introduction, control of the spatial location of NV centers, and the difficulty in scaling processes to large-area diamond wafers. The new process rests on the synthesis of large-area diamond prototype wafers and the use of arrays of carbon-nanotube bundles enabling the controlled introduction of NV centers using field emission and electron bombardment. This new approach enables more control of the energy required to create NV centers allowing the trade-off of qubit creation and defect production, as well as significant advances in the control of spatial positioning of qubits. The results from this research will benefit the US economy and society. Quantum information systems will significantly enhance technologies for security, communications, biomedical sensing, and computing. This research involves several disciplines including manufacturing, materials science, and electrical engineering. The multi-disciplinary approach will help broaden the participation of underrepresented groups in research and will positively impact engineering education.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

这项探索性研究（急切）量子制造奖的早期概念赠款将支持创新研究，以证明一种新的方法，并揭示了有关钻石中氮气胶囊（NV）颜色中心创建的新知识，以实施量子位。量子信息应用程序（例如量子计算，通信和传感）依赖于可重复和健壮的量子位或量子的实现。已经确定了许多材料和系统来创建Qubit，但钻石特别感兴趣，因为其NV中心非常稳定，并提供相对较长的室温相干时间。但是，在诸如钻石等宽带的半导体中创建颜色中心是具有挑战性的。这些材料中的量子制造主要基于常规的微电子制造技术。尽管这些方法为基于钻石的Qubit系统研究提供了基础，但常规的微电子处理技术并不是颜色中心制造的最佳选择。为了改变这一点，该研究将利用强大而可扩展的钻石生长技术以及碳纳米管电子束照射来创建缺陷。尽管已显示钻石中的NV中心有效地实现了量子，但当前的制造过程仍然具有挑战性。大多数实现都依赖于使用离子植入和退火创建的有效量子的后处理识别。特定的制造挑战与平衡缺陷中心创建和钻石缺陷和应变介绍，控制NV中心的空间位置以及将其扩展过程的困难相关的困难有关。新的过程取决于大面积钻石原型晶圆的合成以及使用碳纳米管束阵列，从而可以使用现场发射和电子轰炸来控制NV中心。这种新方法可以更多地控制创建NV中心所需的能量，从而可以权衡量子的创造和缺陷生产，以及控制量子位空间定位的重大进展。 这项研究的结果将使美国经济和社会受益。量子信息系统将显着增强用于安全性，通信，生物医学感应和计算的技术。这项研究涉及几个学科，包括制造，材料科学和电气工程。多学科的方法将有助于扩大代表性不足的群体参与研究的参与，并将对工程教育产生积极影响。该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并被认为是值得通过基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛影响的评估标准来通过评估来获得支持的。