PROBING QUANTUM STATES WITH SILICON CARBIDE NANOELECTRONICS

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Unbreakable cryptography, teleportation of information and ultra-fast computing will soon cease to be figments of science fiction literature. These are now considered imminent realities enabled by the upbringing of quantum technologies [1]. Devices that exploit the laws of quantum physics are developing quickly and many materials are presently under scrutiny to build the future quantum hardware [2-3]. This project will investigate quantum effects in silicon carbide (SiC), a wide-bandgap compound semiconductor made of silicon and carbon. On the one hand, SiC benefits from mature manufacturing techniques, being it extensively used for power electronics. On the other hand, exquisite quantum effects, such as coherent electron spin superposition and single-photon generation, have been demonstrated in this material, by exploiting the properties of atomic defects in its crystal [4-5]. However, most of these experiments have been so far performed in plain unprocessed wafers by means of optical scanning techniques. The crucial step that this PhD project will address is the realisation and control of quantum phenomena in nanometre scale electronic devices, such as transistors and diodes.The research activities will balance device design and modelling, hands-on cleanroom fabrication, as well as electrical and optical experimental measurements with cryogenic set-ups. The student will be involved in making and characterising devices that span from metal-oxide-semiconductor nano-capacitors to superconductive microwave resonators and LEDs, in order to couple electron spins to electromagnetic radiation.[1] The European Quantum Flagship https://qt.eu[2] T.D. Ladd et al. Nature 464, 45 (2010)[3] D.D. Awschalom et al. Science 339, 1174 (2013) [4] A. Lohrmann et al. Rep. Prog. Phys. 80, 034502 (2017)[5] M. Atature et al. Nature Reviews Materials 3, 38 (2018)