X-ray quantification of oxygen groups on diamond surfaces for quantum applications
Journal
Materials for Quantum Technology
Journal Volume
3
Journal Issue
4
ISSN
26334356
Date Issued
2023
Author(s)
Dontschuk, N.
Rodgers, L.V.H.
Evans, D.A.
O’Donnell, K.M.
Johnson, H.J.
Tadich, A.
Schenk, A.K.
Gali, A.
de Leon, N.P.
Stacey, A.
Abstract
Identifying the surface chemistry of diamond materials is increasingly important for device applications, especially quantum sensors. Oxygen-related termination species are widely used because they are naturally abundant, chemically stable, and compatible with stable nitrogen vacancy centres near the diamond surface. Diamond surfaces host a mixture of oxygen-related species, and the precise chemistry and relative coverage of different species can lead to dramatically different electronic properties, with direct consequences for near-surface quantum sensors. However, it is challenging to unambiguously identify the different groups or quantify the relative surface coverage. Here we show that a combination of x-ray absorption and photoelectron spectroscopies can be used to quantitatively identify the coverage of carbonyl functional groups on the { 100 } diamond surface. Using this method we reveal an unexpectedly high fraction of carbonyl groups ( > 9%) on a wide range of sample surfaces. Furthermore, through a combination of ab initio calculations and spectroscopic studies of engineered surfaces, we reveal unexpected complexities in the x-ray spectroscopy of oxygen terminated diamond surfaces. Of particular note, we find the binding energies of carbonyl-related groups on diamond differs significantly from other organic systems, likely resulting in previous misestimation of carbonyl fractions on diamond surfaces. © 2023 The Author(s). Published by IOP Publishing Ltd.
Subjects
DFT
diamond surface for NV centres
NEXAFS
oxygen terminated diamond
surface spectroscopy
XPS
Publisher
Institute of Physics
Description
Article number 045901
Type
journal article