Deterministic printing and heterointegration of single quantum dots

Deterministic printing and heterointegration of single quantum dots | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Deterministic printing and heterointegration of single quantum dots John Mackenzie, Gregory Guymon, Hao Nguyen, David Sharp, Tommy Nguyen, and 5 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6247815/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The unique optical properties of quantum dots (QDs), size-tunable emission and high quantum yield, make them ideal candidates for applications in secure quantum communication, quantum computing, targeted single-cell and molecular tagging, and sensing. Scalable and deterministic heterointegration strategies for single QDs have, however, remained largely out of reach due to inherent material incompatibilities with conventional semiconductor manufacturing processes. To advance scalable photonic quantum device architectures, it is therefore crucial to adopt placement and heterointegration strategies that can address these challenges. Here, we present a electrohydrodynamic (EHD) printing model that exploits nanoscale dielectrophoretics to print single colloidal QDs, with demonstrated single-QD yields of ~50%. Using QDs solubilized in apolar solvents, this additive, near zero-waste nanomanufacturing process overcomes continuum fluid surface energetics and stochastic imprecision that limited previous colloidal deposition strategies, achieving selective extraction and deposition of individual QDs at sub-zeptoliter volumes. Photoluminescence and autocorrelation function g (2) measurements confirm nanophotonic cavity-QD integration and single-photon emission from deterministically-positioned single printed QDs. By enabling deterministic placement of single quantum dots, this method provides a powerful, scalable, and sustainable platform for integrating complex photonic circuits and quantum light sources with nanoscale precision. Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Optical materials and structures/Quantum dots Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Optical materials and structures/Nanocavities Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Optical materials and structures/Nanoparticles Physical sciences/Materials science/Materials for optics/Nanophotonics and plasmonics Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Optical physics/Single photons and quantum effects Electrohydrodynamic printing Quantum dots Additive manufacturing Singlephoton emitters Nanoparticle integration Nanophotonics Nanomanufacturing Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files SupplementaryInformation.pdf Supplementary Information for Deterministic printing of single quantum dots Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6247815","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":447599075,"identity":"38cd9f6b-6350-41b1-8f23-2bfb7fb0c52e","order_by":0,"name":"John 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integration, Nanophotonics, Nanomanufacturing","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6247815/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6247815/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"The unique optical properties of quantum dots (QDs), size-tunable emission and high quantum yield, make them ideal candidates for applications in secure quantum communication, quantum computing, targeted single-cell and molecular tagging, and sensing. Scalable and deterministic heterointegration strategies for single QDs have, however, remained largely out of reach due to inherent material incompatibilities with conventional semiconductor manufacturing processes. To advance scalable photonic quantum device architectures, it is therefore crucial to adopt placement and heterointegration strategies that can address these challenges. Here, we present a electrohydrodynamic (EHD) printing model that exploits nanoscale dielectrophoretics to print single colloidal QDs, with demonstrated single-QD yields of ~50%. Using QDs solubilized in apolar solvents, this additive, near zero-waste nanomanufacturing process overcomes continuum fluid surface energetics and stochastic imprecision that limited previous colloidal deposition strategies, achieving selective extraction and deposition of individual QDs at sub-zeptoliter volumes. Photoluminescence and autocorrelation function \u003ci\u003eg\u003c/i\u003e\u003csup\u003e(2)\u003c/sup\u003e measurements confirm nanophotonic cavity-QD integration and single-photon emission from deterministically-positioned single printed QDs. 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