Electrical excitation of color centers in n -type diamond Schottky diodes

Color centers in diamond are promising systems for quantum technologies and nanophotonics as they are photostable emitters at room and elevated temperatures. The possibility of their electrical excitation has already been demonstrated within p-i-n diodes. However, this requires the growth of complex diamond structures. In contrast to these conventional approaches, we demonstrate the emission from color centers under electrical pumping in a Schottky diode configuration based on n-type diamond. Hydrogen passivation allows the modification of the Schottky barrier height and improves the injection of minority charge carriers needed for the electrical pumping, while electrons are provided by the n-type layer.