Applications of negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond exploit the centers unique optical and spin properties, which at ambient temperature, are predominately governed by electron-phonon interactions. Here, we investigate these interac
tions at ambient and elevated temperatures by observing the motional narrowing of the centers excited state spin resonances. We determine that the centers Jahn-Teller dynamics are much slower than currently believed and identify the vital role of symmetric phonon modes. Our results have pronounced implications for centers diverse applications (including quantum technology) and for understanding its fundamental properties.
The negatively-charged nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center in diamond is at the frontier of quantum nano-metrology and bio-sensing. Recent attention has focused on the application of high-sensitivity thermometry using the spin resonances of NV centers in na
no-diamond to sub-cellular biological and biomedical research. Here, we report a comprehensive investigation of the thermal properties of the centers spin resonances and demonstrate an alternate all-optical NV thermometry technique that exploits the temperature dependence of the centers optical Debye-Waller factor.
The negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy (NV-) centre in diamond has many exciting applications in quantum nano-metrology, including magnetometry, electrometry, thermometry and piezometry. Indeed, it is possible for a single NV- centre to measure the
complete three-dimensional vector of the local electric field or the position of a single fundamental charge in ambient conditions. However, in order to achieve such vector measurements, near complete knowledge of the orientation of the centres defect structure is required. Here, we demonstrate an optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR) technique employing rotations of static electric and magnetic fields that precisely determines the orientation of the centres major and minor trigonal symmetry axes. Thus, our technique is an enabler of the centres existing vector sensing applications and also motivates new applications in multi-axis rotation sensing, NV growth characterization and diamond crystallography.
Significant attention has been recently focused on the realization of high precision nano-thermometry using the spin-resonance temperature shift of the negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy (NV-) center in diamond. However, the precise physical origins
of the temperature shift is yet to be understood. Here, the shifts of the centers optical and spin resonances are observed and a model is developed that identifies the origin of each shift to be a combination of thermal expansion and electron-phonon interactions. Our results provide new insight into the centers vibronic properties and reveal implications for NV- thermometry.
The negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy (NV-) center in diamond has realized new frontiers in quantum technology. Here, the centers optical and spin resonances are observed under hydrostatic pressures up to 60 GPa. Our observations motivate powerful
new techniques to measure pressure and image high pressure magnetic and electric phenomena. Our observations further reveal a fundamental inadequacy of the current model of the center and provide new insight into its electronic structure.
The nitrogen-vacancy (NV) colour centre in diamond is an important physical system for emergent quantum technologies, including quantum metrology, information processing and communications, as well as for various nanotechnologies, such as biological
and sub-diffraction limit imaging, and for tests of entanglement in quantum mechanics. Given this array of existing and potential applications and the almost 50 years of NV research, one would expect that the physics of the centre is well understood, however, the study of the NV centre has proved challenging, with many early assertions now believed false and many remaining issues yet to be resolved. This review represents the first time that the key empirical and ab initio results have been extracted from the extensive NV literature and assembled into one consistent picture of the current understanding of the centre. As a result, the key unresolved issues concerning the NV centre are identified and the possible avenues for their resolution are examined.
The time-averaged emission spectrum of single nitrogen-vacancy defects in diamond gives zero-phonon lines of both the negative charge state at 637 nm (1.945 eV) and the neutral charge state at 575 nm (2.156 eV). This occurs through photo-conversion b
etween the two charge states. Due to strain in the diamond the zero-phonon lines are split and it is found that the splitting and polarization of the two zero-phonon lines are the same. From this observation and consideration of the electronic structure of the nitrogen-vacancy center it is concluded that the excited state of the neutral center has A2 orbital symmetry. The assignment of the 575 nm transition to a 2E - 2A2 transition has not been established previously.
The ground state spin of the negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond has many exciting applications in quantum metrology and solid state quantum information processing, including magnetometry, electrometry, quantum memory and quantum op
tical networks. Each of these applications involve the interaction of the spin with some configuration of electric, magnetic and strain fields, however, to date there does not exist a detailed model of the spins interactions with such fields, nor an understanding of how the fields influence the time-evolution of the spin and its relaxation and inhomogeneous dephasing. In this work, a general solution is obtained for the spin in any given electric-magnetic-strain field configuration for the first time, and the influence of the fields on the evolution of the spin is examined. Thus, this work provides the essential theoretical tools for the precise control and modeling of this remarkable spin in its current and future applications.
The ground state spin of the negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond has been the platform for the recent rapid expansion of new frontiers in quantum metrology and solid state quantum information processing. In ambient conditions, the s
pin has been demonstrated to be a high precision magnetic and electric field sensor as well as a solid state qubit capable of coupling with nearby nuclear and electronic spins. However, in spite of its many outstanding demonstrations, the theory of the spin has not yet been fully developed and there does not currently exist thorough explanations for many of its properties, such as the anisotropy of the electron g-factor and the existence of Stark effects and strain splittings. In this work, the theory of the ground state spin is fully developed for the first time using the molecular orbital theory of the center in order to provide detailed explanations for the spins fine and hyperfine structures and its interactions with electric, magnetic and strain fields.
