A complete physical germanium-on-silicon quantum dot self-assembly process.

Achieving quantum dot self-assembly at precise pre-defined locations is of vital interest. In this work, a novel physical method for producing germanium quantum dots on silicon using nanoindentation to pre-define nucleation sites is described. Self-assembly of ordered ~10 nm height germanium quantum dot arrays on silicon substrates is achieved. Due to the inherent simplicity and elegance of the proposed method, the results describe an attractive technique to manufacture semiconductor quantum dot structures for future quantum electronic and photonic applications.