Nutpool Materials

Abstract Quantum emitters in two-dimensional hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) are attractive for a variety of quantum and photonic technologies because they combine ultra-bright, room-temperature single-photon emission with an atomically thin crystal. However, the emitter's prominence is hindered by large, strain-induced wavelength shifts. We report the discovery of a visible wavelength, single-photon emitter (SPE) in a zero-dimensional boron nitride allotrope--the boron nitride nanococoon (BNNC)--that retains the excellent optical characteristics of few-layer hBN while possessing an emission line variation that is an order of magnitude lower than the hBN emitter. We determined the emission source to be the nanometer-size BNNC through cross correlation of optical confocal microscopy with high-resolution scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Altogether, this discovery enlivens color centers in BN materials and, because of the BN nanococoon's size, opens new and exciting opportunities in nanophotonics, quantum information, biological imaging, and nanoscale sensing.