Effects of microstructure and growth conditions on quantum emitters in gallium nitride

Single-photon emitters in gallium nitride (GaN) are gaining interest as attractive quantum systems due to the well-established techniques for growth and nanofabrication of the host material, as well as its remarkable chemical stability and optoelectronic properties. We investigate the nature of such single-photon emitters in GaN with a systematic analysis of various samples produced under different growth conditions. We explore the effect that intrinsic structural defects (dislocations and stacking faults), doping, and crystal orientation in GaN have on the formation of quantum emitters. We investigate the relationship between the position of the emitters—determined via spectroscopy and photoluminescence measurements—and the location of threading dislocations—characterized both via atomic force microscopy and cathodoluminescence. We find that quantum emitters do not correlate with stacking faults or dislocations; instead, they are more likely to originate from point defects or impurities whose density is modulated by the local extended defect density.