Microscopic nature and formation mechanisms of localized AlN light emitters

Determine the microscopic nature and formation mechanisms of spatially localized light emitters in AlN thin films, including the defect complexes responsible for their optical emission and the processes governing their formation during growth and post-growth treatment.

Background

Localized light emitters in AlN are promising candidates for single-photon sources because they emit within the material’s broad transparency window and can potentially be integrated into quantum-photonic platforms. The paper discusses evidence that these emitters may arise either spontaneously during AlN growth or through post-growth processing such as proton irradiation followed by annealing.

Although theoretical studies have tentatively associated the emitters with intrinsic defect complexes, the paper does not establish their microscopic composition or explain how the growth conditions and post-growth treatments generate the optically active centers. The reported dependence of emitter density and brightness on nitrogen-rich versus aluminum-rich growth conditions further indicates that the defect-formation pathway remains unresolved.