by Man Wah-Kit. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 177-180). / LIST OF FIGURES / LIST OF TABLES / abstract --- p.1 / Chapter 1. --- introduction --- p.3 / Chapter 2. --- fabrication process / Chapter 2-1 --- INTRODUCTION --- p.7 / Chapter 2-2 --- PROCESS DEVELOPMENT --- p.8 / Chapter 2-3 --- FABRICATION PROCEDURES FOR TIN FILMS --- p.10 / Chapter 2-4 --- FABRICATION PROCEDURES FOR TIN OXIDE FILMS --- p.14 / Chapter 2-5 --- FABRICATION THEORY --- p.21 / Chapter 2-6 --- OXYGEN ION IMPLANTATION OF TIN FILMS --- p.24 / Chapter 3. --- structural characterization / Chapter 3-1 --- INTRODUCTION --- p.30 / Chapter 3-2 --- MICROSTRUCTURE / Chapter 3-2-1 --- SOME RELATED THEORIES OF GRAIN GROWTH / Chapter (1) --- Classical Theory of Grain Growth --- p.30 / Chapter (2) --- Hillock Growth --- p.31 / Chapter (3) --- Dislocation Creep Theory --- p.33 / Chapter (4) --- Biaxial Stress in Thin Films --- p.35 / Chapter (5) --- Surface Cluster Growth --- p.37 / Chapter 3-3 --- EXPERIMENTATION AND RESULTS / Chapter 3-3-1 --- MICROSTRUCTURAL ANALYSIS UNDER OPTICAL MICROSCOPE --- p.39 / Chapter 3-3-2 --- THE STRESS AND HILLOCK HEIGHT ANALYSIS OF TIN OXIDE FILMS --- p.48 / Chapter 3-3-3 --- MICROSTRUCTURAL ANALYSIS BY MEANS OF ATOMIC FORCE MICROSCOPE (AFM) --- p.52 / Chapter 3-3-4 --- MICROSTRUCTURAL ANALYSIS BY X-RAY DIFFRACTION --- p.69 / Chapter 3-3-5 --- SURFACE ANALYSIS BY MEANS OF X-RAY PHOTOELECTRON SPECTROSCOPY / Chapter (1) --- Introduction --- p.73 / Chapter (2) --- Basic Theory --- p.73 / Chapter (3) --- Experimentation And Results --- p.75 / Chapter 3-3-6 --- SURFACE STUDY OF ION IMPLANTED TIN OXIDE FILMS / Chapter (1) --- Experimental Results --- p.82 / Chapter 3-4 --- DISCUSSION / Chapter 3-4-1 --- QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS OF MICROSTRUCTURE WITH THE OPTICAL MICROSCOPE --- p.88 / Chapter 3-4-2 --- QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS OF MICROSTRUCTURE WITH SEM AND AFM / Chapter (1) --- Grain Growth of Tin Oxide Films --- p.89 / Chapter (2) --- Dependence of Grain Size on Deposition Rate --- p.91 / Chapter (3) --- Dependence of Grain Size on Film Thickness --- p.92 / Chapter (4) --- Dependence of Grain Size on Substrate Temperature --- p.92 / Chapter (5) --- Origin of Hillock Growth of Tin Oxide Films --- p.93 / Chapter 3-4-3 --- FILM COMPOSITIONAL ANALYSIS WITH X-RAY DIFFRACTION --- p.95 / Chapter 3-4-4 --- SURFACE ANALYSIS WITH X-RAY PHOTOELECTRON SPECTROSCOPY …… --- p.95 / Chapter 3-4-5 --- SURFACE ANALYSIS OF OXYGEN IMPLANTED TIN FILMS --- p.96 / Chapter 4. --- OPTICAL CHARACTERIZATION / Chapter 4-1 --- INTRODUCTION --- p.98 / Chapter 4-2 --- THEORY / Chapter (1) --- Free Electron Model --- p.99 / Chapter (2) --- Effect of Film Thickness --- p.100 / Chapter (3) --- Effect of Oxygen Contents --- p.101 / Chapter (4) --- Electron-Lattice Interaction and Bandgap Studies --- p.102 / Chapter 4-3 --- EXPERIMENTATION AND RESULTS --- p.105 / Chapter 4-4 --- DISCUSSION / Chapter 4-4-1 --- BANDGAP STUDIES FOR TIN OXIDE FILMS WITH DIFFERENT DEPOSITION CONDITIONS / Chapter (1) --- Variation of Film Thickness --- p.122 / Chapter (2) --- Film Appearance --- p.123 / Chapter (3) --- Variation of Substrate Temperature --- p.123 / Chapter (4) --- Variation of Oxidation Conditions --- p.123 / Chapter 5. --- ELECTRICAL CHARACTERIZATION / Chapter 5-1 --- INTRODUCTION --- p.126 / Chapter 5-2 --- RELATED THEORY / Chapter 5-2-1 --- CURRENT-VOLTAGE (I-V) CHARACTERISTICS --- p.127 / Chapter 5-2-2 --- CAPACITANCE-VOLTAGE (C-V) CHARACTERISTICS --- p.131 / Chapter 5-2-3 --- RELATION OF ELECTRICAL TO STRUCTURAL PROPERTIES / Chapter (A) --- Effects of Deposition Conditions --- p.133 / Chapter (B) --- Effects of Grain Boundaries --- p.133 / Chapter (C) --- Effects of Ionic Impurities --- p.134 / Chapter (D) --- Effects of The Interface Properties --- p.134 / Chapter 5-2-4 --- MEASURING TECHNIQUES / Chapter (A) --- I-V Measurment of Tin Oxide on a Silicon Substrate --- p.136 / Chapter (B) --- C-V Measurement of Tin Oxide Films on Silicon Substrates --- p.137 / Chapter (C) --- Electrical Measurement of Tin Oxide Films on a Quartz Substrate --- p.137 / Chapter 5-3 --- EXPERIMENTATION --- p.138 / Chapter 5-4 --- RESULTS --- p.141 / Chapter 5-5 --- DISCUSSION / Chapter 5-5-1 --- Analysis of the Conduction Mechanism for Sn02/Si n-p Heterojunctions --- p.161 / Chapter 5-5-2 --- Analysis of the Conduction Mechanism for Sn02/Si n-n Heterojunctions --- p.162 / Chapter 5-5-3 --- Effect on the Conduction Mechanisms of Film Thickness --- p.164 / Chapter 5-5-4 --- Effect on the Conduction Mechanisms of Oxidation Time --- p.166 / Chapter 5-5-5 --- Interfacial Properties of SnOx/Si Heterojunctions --- p.166 / Chapter 5-5-6 --- Electrical Properties of SnOx Films on Quartz / Chapter (1) --- Dependence of Film Conductivity on Measuring Temperatures --- p.168 / Chapter (2) --- Dependence of Film Conductivity on Oxidation Time --- p.168 / Chapter (3) --- Dependence of Film Conductivity on Oxidation Temperature --- p.169 / Chapter (4) --- Invariance of Film Conductivity at Some Certain Measuring Temperatures --- p.170 / Chapter (5) --- Activation Energy of Sn02 Films on Quartz --- p.170 / Chapter 6. --- CONCLUSIONS --- p.172 / Chapter 7. --- FUTURE WORKS --- p.175 / Chapter 8. --- REFERENCES --- p.177 / Chapter 9. --- APPENDICES / Chapter 9-1 --- APPENDIX A List of photos --- p.181 / Chapter 9-2 --- APPENDIX B (1) ED AX results for some selected regions on samples with hillocks --- p.182 / Chapter (2) --- Relations between mean surface roughness and oxidation conditions --- p.185 / Chapter (3) --- XPS original data and typical XPS spectra for vacuum- evaporated SnO2 thin film --- p.186 / Chapter 9-3 --- "APPENDIX C Variations of optical parameters, refractive index n and extinction coefficient k in visible region with different oxidation conditions" --- p.189 / Chapter 9-4 --- APPENDIX D Electrical results for Sn02/Si heterojunction s --- p.191 / Chapter 9-5 --- APPENDIX E Calculations of band diagram for Sn02/Si heterojunctions --- p.194 / Chapter 9-6 --- APPENDIX F Resistivity versus impurity concentration for silicon at 300K --- p.196

Micro– and subsequently nano–scale fabrication techniques have reshaped our world more drastically than almost any other development of the last half-century. Spurred by the invention of the transistor at Bell Labs in 1947, monolithic integrated circuits—or microchips in the colloquial lexicon—were developed in ’59, kickstarting the modern digital age as we know it. More recently, the maturation of classical computing technology and significant advancements in materials science have led to a boom of interest in and progress by the quantum sector on both computation and communication fronts. The explosive growth currently underway in the field of quantum information science (QIS) marks the dawning of a new age, which will undoubtedly transform our world in ways we have yet to imagine. This dissertation seeks to leverage advanced nanofabrication approaches, atomically thin materials, and state of the art microscopy techniques to develop room-temperature single photon sources for QIS applications. A basic overview of 2D materials is provided in Chapter 1. Particular emphasis is placed on the optical properties of tungsten diselenide (WSe2), which is followed by a brief discussion of quantum emitters in 2D and other material systems. Chapter 2 describes the scanning near-field optical microscopy (SNOM) technique we use to investigate the photoluminescence (PL) response of strained WSe₂ with resolution well below the classical diffraction limit. The third chapter is dedicated to the various fabrication methods explored and developed to produce the plasmonic substrates necessary for near-field optical studies. The first section focuses on the creation of extremely flat metallic surfaces, while the second deals with extremely sharp metallic stressors. These two platforms enable the investigations of nanobubbles—touched upon in Chapter 2—and nanowrinkles, which are the subject of discussion in Chapter 4. The strain confinement provided by these wrinkles leads to highly localized quantum dot-like states that exhibit excitation power saturation at room temperature. Together, these studies lay the groundwork for achieving high-temperature quantum emission in atomically thin semiconducting van der Waals materials.