High-throughput focused ion beam platform for deterministic single ion implantation

Single ion implantation is of interest for a wide range of quantum applications, such as quantum communication, computation and sensing. Implantation of single ions allows creation of donor qubits in Si or creation of optically active defect centers, for example SiV in diamond. However, the number of ions implanted is governed by the Poisson distribution. While at high doses, the spread of the Poisson distribution about its mean value becomes negligible, when implanting a single ion, the two failure modes of implantation of no ion or more than one ion exceed the probability of implanting one ion. In order to enable high-throughput creation of quantum devices, it is necessary to deterministically implant single ions with high spatial resolution. Using a focused ion beam system, spot sizes of 10s of nm can be achieved, sufficiently small for most quantum applications. To enable deterministic implantation of single ions, the sample to be implanted is turned into a detector, enabling detection of ions with near 100% efficiency. To implant single ions, the ion beam is pulsed onto the sample for short periods of time and immediately interrupted once an ion strike has been detected on the sample.