Color centers in hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) are presently attracting broad interest as a novel platform for nanoscale sensing and quantum information processing. Unfortunately, their atomic structures remain largely elusive and only a small percentage of the emitters studied thus far have the properties required to serve as optically addressable spin qubits. Here, we use confocal fluorescence microscopy at variable temperatures to study a new class of point defects produced via cerium ion implantation in thin hBN flakes. We find that, to a significant fraction, emitters show bright room-temperature emission, and good optical stability suggesting the formation of Ce-based point defects. Using density functional theory (DFT) we calculate the emission properties of candidate emitters, and single out the CeV_B center—formed by an interlayer Ce atom adjacent to a boron vacancy—as one possible microscopic model. Our results suggest an intriguing route to defect engineering that simultaneously exploits the singular properties of rare-earth ions and the versatility of two-dimensional material hosts.

中文翻译：

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Ce注入六方氮化硼中光子发射器的研究

六方氮化硼 (hBN) 中的色心作为纳米级传感和量子信息处理的新平台，目前引起了广泛的兴趣。不幸的是，它们的原子结构在很大程度上仍然难以捉摸，迄今为止研究的发射体中只有一小部分具有用作光学可寻址自旋量子位所需的特性。在这里，我们使用可变温度下的共聚焦荧光显微镜来研究通过铈离子注入薄 hBN 薄片中产生的一类新点缺陷。我们发现，在很大一部分上，发射体显示出明亮的室温发射和良好的光学稳定性，表明形成了基于 Ce 的点缺陷。我们使用密度泛函理论 (DFT) 计算候选发射器的发射特性，并挑选出 CeV _B中心 - 由与硼空位相邻的层间 Ce 原子形成 - 作为一种可能的微观模型。我们的结果提出了一条有趣的缺陷工程途径，它同时利用了稀土离子的奇异特性和二维材料主体的多功能性。