Prospects and challenges of quantum emitters in 2D materials

The search for an ideal single-photon source has generated significant interest in discovering emitters in materials as well as developing new manipulation techniques to gain better control over the emitters' properties. Quantum emitters in atomically thin two-dimensional (2D) materials have proven to be very attractive with high brightness, operation under ambient conditions, and the ability to be integrated with a wide range of electronic and photonic platforms. This Perspective highlights some of the recent advances in quantum light generation from 2D materials, focusing on hexagonal boron nitride and transition metal dichalcogenides. Efforts in engineering and deterministically creating arrays of quantum emitters in 2D materials, their electrical excitation, and their integration with photonic devices are discussed. Finally, we address some of the challenges the field is facing and the near-term efforts to tackle them. We provide an outlook toward efficient and scalable quantum light generation from 2D materials to controllable and addressable on-chip quantum sources.