We demonstrate operation of a rotation sensor based on the $^{14}$N nuclear spins intrinsic to nitrogen-vacancy (NV) color centers in diamond. The sensor employs optical polarization and readout of the nuclei and a radio-frequency double-quantum pulse protocol that monitors $^{14}$N nuclear spin precession. This measurement protocol suppresses the sensitivity to temperature variations in the $^{14}$N quadrupole splitting, and it does not require microwave pulses resonant with the NV electron spin transitions. The device was tested on a rotation platform and demonstrated a sensitivity of 4.7 $^{circ}/sqrt{rm{s}}$ (13 mHz/$sqrt{rm{Hz}}$), with bias stability of 0.4 $^{circ}$/s (1.1 mHz).
A rotation sensor is one of the key elements of inertial navigation systems and compliments most cellphone sensor sets used for various applications. Currently, inexpensive and efficient solutions are mechanoelectronic devices, which nevertheless lack long-term stability. Realization of rotation sensors based on spins of fundamental particles may become a drift-free alternative to such devices. Here, we carry out a proof-of-concept experiment, demonstrating rotation measurements on a rotating setup utilizing nuclear spins of an ensemble of NV centers as a sensing element with no stationary reference. The measurement is verified by a commercially available MEMS gyroscope.
A promising approach for multi-qubit quantum registers is to use optically addressable spins to control multiple dark electron-spin defects in the environment. While recent experiments have observed signatures of coherent interactions with such dark spins, it is an open challenge to realize the individual control required for quantum information processing. Here we demonstrate the initialisation, control and entanglement of individual dark spins associated to multiple P1 centers, which are part of a spin bath surrounding a nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond. We realize projective measurements to prepare the multiple degrees of freedom of P1 centers - their Jahn-Teller axis, nuclear spin and charge state - and exploit these to selectively access multiple P1s in the bath. We develop control and single-shot readout of the nuclear and electron spin, and use this to demonstrate an entangled state of two P1 centers. These results provide a proof-of-principle towards using dark electron-nuclear spin defects as qubits for quantum sensing, computation and networks.
We present a highly sensitive miniaturized cavity-enhanced room-temperature magnetic-field sensor based on nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond. The magnetic resonance signal is detected by probing absorption on the 1042,nm spin-singlet transition. To improve the absorptive signal the diamond is placed in an optical resonator. The device has a magnetic-field sensitivity of 28 pT/$sqrt{rm{Hz}}$, a projected photon shot-noise-limited sensitivity of 22 pT/$sqrt{rm{Hz}}$ and an estimated quantum projection-noise-limited sensitivity of 0.43 pT/$sqrt{rm{Hz}}$ with the sensing volume of $sim$ 390 $mu$m $times$ 4500 $mu$m$^{2}$. The presented miniaturized device is the basis for an endoscopic magnetic field sensor for biomedical applications.
We experimentally investigate the protection of electron spin coherence of nitrogen vacancy (NV) center in diamond by dynamical nuclear polarization. The electron spin decoherence of an NV center is caused by the magnetic ield fluctuation of the $^{13}$C nuclear spin bath, which contributes large thermal fluctuation to the center electron spin when it is in equilibrium state at room temperature. To address this issue, we continuously transfer the angular momentum from electron spin to nuclear spins, and pump the nuclear spin bath to a polarized state under Hartman-Hahn condition. The bath polarization effect is verified by the observation of prolongation of the electron spin coherence time ($T_2^*$). Optimal conditions for the dynamical nuclear polarization (DNP) process, including the pumping pulse duration and depolarization effect of laser pulses, are studied. Our experimental results provide strong support for quantum information processing and quantum simulation using polarized nuclear spin bath in solid state systems.
Dynamic nuclear polarisation, which transfers the spin polarisation of electrons to nuclei, is routinely applied to enhance the sensitivity of nuclear magnetic resonance; it is also critical in spintronics, particularly when spin hyperpolarisation can be produced and controlled optically or electrically. Here we show the complete polarisation of nuclei located near the optically-polarised nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centre in diamond. When approaching the ground-state level anti-crossing condition of the NV electron spins, 13C nuclei in the first-shell are polarised in a pattern that depends sensitively and sharply upon the magnetic field. Based on the anisotropy of the hyperfine coupling and of the optical polarisation mechanism, we predict and observe a complete reversal of the nuclear spin polarisation with a few-mT change in the magnetic field. The demonstrated sensitive magnetic control of nuclear polarisation at room temperature will be useful for sensitivity-enhanced NMR, nuclear-based spintronics, and quantum computation in diamond.