Silicon clathrates for quantum information applications

Meenakshi Singh

msingh@mines.edu

Crystalline allotropes of silicon, alternative crystal structures to diamond silicon, hold the promise of exciting optical and electronic properties in a silicon-based material. Exotic forms of silicon have been studied for some time, however, the properties of defect states in these materials, and their potential for quantum information science (QIS), is essentially unexplored. Detailed characterization of the electrical properties of the Si-allotrope-dopant thin films is critical for future integration into QIS devices. Although these properties have been investigated both experimentally and theoretically for bulk samples before, bulk transport is dominated by grain boundaries, obscuring the Physics governing the material itself, which is relevant at the scales of interest here. We will use a combination of photolithography, electron beam lithography, and focused ion beam induced deposition to make electrical contact to individual grains and characterize them. These efforts will pave the way to developing single electron transistor devices in these systems, akin to those used in diamond Si for qubit readout.

Grand Challenge: Engineer the tools of scientific discovery.

[1] 10.1088/1361-648x/ab699d

[2] 10.1103/PhysRevB.101.245204

Meenakshi Singh, msingh@mines.edu