Spin-active chlorine-related centers in 4H-SiC with telecom-band emissions

In chlorine-implanted 4H-SiC, a photoluminescence (PL) band with four narrow zero-phonon lines (ZPLs) in the range of 1350–1540 nm, labeled Cl1–Cl4, is observed. Among these, two ZPLs in the telecom C-band, Cl1 and Cl2 at 1539.2 and 1533.3 nm, respectively, exhibit high Debye–Waller factors (∼59% and ∼41%, respectively). Optically detected magnetic resonance confirms that the Cl-related center is spin active and stable at room temperature with zero-field splitting in the range of 1.0–1.4 GHz. The combined favorable optical and spin properties and advantages of an industrially established SiC material suggest this Cl-related center to be a highly promising candidate for scalable quantum networks.