Nitrogen-Vacancy Centers in Diamond Systems
Summary
The nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centre in diamond is a point defect formed by a substitutional nitrogen atom adjacent to a lattice vacancy. In its negatively charged state, it exhibits a spin-1 electronic ground state that can be polarised, manipulated and read out using optical and microwave techniques at ambient conditions. Optical excitation generates spin-dependent photoluminescence, enabling optically detected magnetic resonance and high-resolution sensing of magnetic, electric and thermal fields. NV centres can be fabricated in bulk diamond, thin membranes or nanodiamonds through ion implantation or chemical vapour deposition. Their exceptional spin coherence, even at room temperature, has made them key resources in quantum metrology, nanoscale magnetometry, hybrid quantum systems and emergent quantum networks. Recent efforts have focused on scaling sensitivity, extending coherence via advanced decoupling sequences and integrating NV centres with photonic or mechanical resonators to realise compact, high-performance quantum devices.
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Nitrogen-Vacancy Centers in Diamond Systems publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond systems across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Nitrogen-vacancy centre: A defect in diamond comprising a substitutional nitrogen atom adjacent to a vacancy, which in its negative charge state forms a spin-1 system with optical addressability.
Optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR): A method in which microwave-induced spin transitions produce changes in photoluminescence, allowing non-invasive readout of spin states and local fields.
Coherence time: Characteristic durations T₁ (spin-population relaxation) and T₂ (spin-phase dephasing) over which a spin qubit retains its quantum state fidelity.
Zero-phonon line (ZPL): The purely electronic optical transition of a defect centre, appearing as a sharp spectral feature free from phonon sidebands and crucial for indistinguishable photon emission.
References
- Subpicotesla Diamond Magnetometry. Physical Review X (2015).
- A Ten-Qubit Solid-State Spin Register with Quantum Memory up to One Minute. Physical Review X (2019).
- Strain Coupling of a Nitrogen-Vacancy Center Spin to a Diamond Mechanical Oscillator. Physical Review Letters (2014).
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