© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

Terms Privacy Legal Notice

arXiv:2105.00519 · Physical Review Research

Steady state entanglement of distant nitrogen-vacancy centers in a coherent thermal magnon bath

Kamran Ullah, Emre Köse, Rawana Yagan, Mehmet C. Onbaşlı, Özgür Esat Müstecaplıoğlu

Published Jun 17, 2022• 15 citations

Abstract

We investigate steady state entanglement (SSE) between two nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center defects in a diamond host on an ultrathin yttrium iron garnet (YIG) strip. We determine the dephasing and dissipative interactions of the qubits with the quanta of spin waves (magnon bath) in the YIG depending on the qubit positions on the strip. We show that the magnon's dephasing effect can be eliminated, and we can transform the bath into a multimode displaced thermal state using external magnetic fields. Entanglement dynamics of the qubits in such a displaced thermal bath have been analyzed by deriving and solving the master equation. An additional electric field is considered to engineer the magnon dispersion relation at the band edge to control the Markovian character of the open system dynamics. We determine the optimum geometrical parameters of the system of distant qubits and the YIG strip to get SSE. Furthermore, parameter regimes for which the shared displaced magnon bath can sustain significant SSE against the local dephasing and decoherence of NV centers to their nuclear spin environments have been determined. Along with SSE, we investigate the steady state coherence (SSC) and explain the physical mechanism of how delayed SSE appears following a rapid generation and sudden death of entanglement using the interplay of decoherence-free subspace states, system geometry, displacement of the thermal bath, and enhancement of the qubit dissipation near the magnon band edge. A nonmonotonic relation between bath coherence and SSE is found, and critical coherence for maximum SSE is determined. Our results illuminate the efficient use of system geometry, band edge in bath spectrum, and reservoir coherence to engineer system-reservoir interactions for robust SSE and SSC.

DOI: 10.1103/physrevresearch.4.023221

Related papers

Steady-state entanglement of spin qubits mediated by nonreciprocal and chiral magnons

Martijn Dols, Mikhail A. Cherkasskii, Victor A. S. V. Bittencourt +3 more

We propose a hybrid quantum system in which a magnet supporting nonreciprocal magnons, chiral magnons, or both mediates the dissipative and unidirectional coupling of spin qubits. By driving the qubits, the steady state of this qubit-qubit coupling scheme becomes the maximally entangled Bell state. We devise a protocol where the system converges to this entangled state and benchmark it including qubit decay and dephasing. The protocol is numerically tested on a hybrid system consisting of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers coupled to magnon surface modes of a yttrium iron garnet (YIG) film. We show that the dephasing time of the NV centers forms the bottleneck for achieving the entanglement of NV centers separated by a distance within the magnon coherence length. Our findings identify the key technological requirements and demonstrate a viable route toward steady-state entanglement of solid-state spins over distances of several microns using magnonic quantum networks, expanding the toolbox of magnonics for quantum information purposes.

arXiv:2509.13094•Physical Review Research•May 21, 2026•1 citation

Single-nitrogen-vacancy-center quantum memory for a superconducting flux qubit mediated by a ferromagnet

Yen-Yu Lai, Guin-Dar Lin, Jason Twamley +1 more

We propose a quantum memory scheme to transfer and store the quantum state of a superconducting flux qubit (FQ) into the electron spin of a single nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center in diamond via yttrium iron garnet (YIG), a ferromagnet. Unlike an ensemble of NV centers, the YIG moderator can enhance the effective FQ-NV-center coupling strength without introducing additional appreciable decoherence. We derive the effective interaction between the FQ and the NV center by tracing out the degrees of freedom of the collective mode of the YIG spins. We demonstrate the transfer, storage, and retrieval procedures, taking into account the effects of spontaneous decay and pure dephasing. Using realistic experimental parameters for the FQ, NV center and YIG, we find that a combined transfer, storage, and retrieval fidelity higher than 0.9, with a long storage time of 10 ms, can be achieved. This hybrid system not only acts as a promising quantum memory, but also provides an example of enhanced coupling between various systems through collective degrees of freedom.

arXiv:1804.11231•Physical Review A•May 2, 2018•31 citations

Chiral magnons for spin-qubit state transfer

Martijn Dols, Carlos Gonzalez-Ballestero, Mikhail Cherkasskii +3 more

We propose a protocol where chiral magnons mediate a state transfer between two distant spin qubits. The protocol is implemented by varying the coupling between the spin qubits and the magnons in time, such that an arbitrary state is transferred from one qubit to the other. The modulation of the coupling is performed such that the two-spin-qubit state is kept as a dark state of the magnon bath, bypassing the associated losses. We show that the protocol can be realized on a hybrid system composed of two nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers coupled to the nonreciprocal and chiral magnon modes of an yttrium iron garnet (YIG) stripe. We propose two methods to achieve the time modulation of the NV-magnon coupling: i) the NV-magnet distance of both NV centers is varied; ii) the external magnetic field and the NV-magnet distance of one NV center are varied. We evaluate the implementability of both methods numerically, including the constraints on the temperature, and the dephasing time and minimal lifetime of the spin qubits required for high-fidelity state transfer. We find that using realistic experimental parameters, a state transfer between NV centers at a distance of several microns can be achieved with a fidelity $\gtrsim 0.95$. Our findings expand the toolbox of magnonics for quantum information purposes.

quant-pharXiv:2607.29206•Aug 3, 2026

Long-range and steady-state entanglement of nitrogen vacancy centers using microwaves as a drive and synthetic antiferromagnet as a dissipator

Federico Garcia-Gaitan, Branislav K. Nikolić

The search for optimal schemes and dissipative environments that can mediate long-range entanglement between two distant nitrogen-vacancy centers (NVCs) in diamond has been the subject of vigorous efforts over the past decade due to potential applications of such microscopic solid-state qubits in quantum sensing and quantum computing. However, stabilizing entanglement of NVCs into a {\em steady state} poses a significant challenge, typically requiring tuning the environment {\em out of equilibrium}. Here we microscopically and rigorously derive a Lindblad quantum master equation (QME) for a system of two {\em driven-dissipative} NVCs, where the drive is microwave radiation and dissipation is provided by a single magnetic bath that is kept in {\em equilibrium}. The jump operators within the Lindblad QME are expressed in terms of Keldysh Green's functions defined as correlators of dipolar field operators of the bath. This QME makes it possible to predict precise conditions for long-range and steady-state entanglement of two NVCs, while suggesting that a synthetic antiferromagnet could be an {\em optimal} choice for a dissipative environment. By using realistic parameters from available experiments, we estimate steady-state concurrence reaching $\mathcal{C}\simeq 0.28$ for two NVCs separated by $\sim 100 \: \mathrm{nm}$.

arXiv:2607.15259•Jul 16, 2026•0 citations

Cross-entangling electronic and nuclear spins of distant nitrogen-vacancy centers in noisy environments by means of quantum microwave radiation

Angela Gomez, Ferney J. Rodríguez, Luis Quiroga

Nitrogen-vacancy (NV) defect centers in diamond are strong candidates to generate entangled states in solid-state environments even at room temperature. Quantum correlations in spatially separated NV systems, for distances between NVs ranging from a few nanometers to a few kilometers, have been recently reported. In the present paper, we consider the entanglement transfer from two-mode microwave-squeezed (entangled) photons, which are in resonance with the two lowest NV electron spin states, to initially unentangled NV centers. We first demonstrate that the entanglement transfer process from quantum microwaves to isolated NV electron spins is feasible. We then proceed to extend the previous results to more realistic scenarios where $^{13}\mathrm{C}$ nuclear spin baths surrounding each NV are included, quantifying the entanglement transfer efficiency and robustness under the effects of dephasing/dissipation noisy nuclear baths. Finally, we address the issue of assessing the possibility of entanglement transfer from the squeezed microwave light to two remote nuclear spins closely linked to different NV centers.

arXiv:1807.09910•Physical review. B./Physical review. B•Aug 7, 2018•3 citations

Decoherence of nitrogen-vacancy spin ensembles in a nitrogen electron-nuclear spin bath in diamond

Huijin Park, Jung‐Hyun Lee, Sang-Wook Han +2 more

Abstract Nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond have been developed into essential hardware units for a wide range of solid-state-based quantum technology applications. While such applications require the long spin coherence times of the NV centers, they are often limited due to decoherence. In this study, we theoretically investigate the decoherence of NV-spin ensembles induced by nitrogen impurities (P1 centers), which are one of the most dominant and inevitable magnetic field noise sources in diamond. We combined cluster correlation expansion and density functional theory to compute the Hahn-echo spin-coherence time of the NV centers for a broad range of P1 concentrations. Results indicate a clear linear dependence of T2 on P1 concentrations on a log scale with a slope of −1.06, which is in excellent agreement with previous experimental results. The interplay between the Jahn–Teller effect and the hyperfine interaction in the P1 center plays a critical role in determining the bath dynamics and the resulting NV decoherence. Our results provide a theoretical upper bound for the NV-spin T2 over a wide range of P1 densities, serving as a key reference for materials optimization and spin bath characterization to develop highly coherent NV-based devices for quantum information technology.

npj Quantum Information•Aug 12, 2022•46 citations

We investigate steady state entanglement (SSE) between two nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center defects in a diamond host on an ultrathin yttrium iron garnet (YIG) strip. We determine the dephasing and dissipative interactions of the qubits with the quanta of spin waves (magnon bath) in the YIG depending on the qubit positions on the strip. We show that the magnon's dephasing effect can be eliminated, and we can transform the bath into a multimode displaced thermal state using external magnetic fields. Entanglement dynamics of the qubits in such a displaced thermal bath have been analyzed by deriving and solving the master equation. An additional electric field is considered to engineer the magnon dispersion relation at the band edge to control the Markovian character of the open system dynamics. We determine the optimum geometrical parameters of the system of distant qubits and the YIG strip to get SSE. Furthermore, parameter regimes for which the shared displaced magnon bath can sustain significant SSE against the local dephasing and decoherence of NV centers to their nuclear spin environments have been determined. Along with SSE, we investigate the steady state coherence (SSC) and explain the physical mechanism of how delayed SSE appears following a rapid generation and sudden death of entanglement using the interplay of decoherence-free subspace states, system geometry, displacement of the thermal bath, and enhancement of the qubit dissipation near the magnon band edge. A nonmonotonic relation between bath coherence and SSE is found, and critical coherence for maximum SSE is determined. Our results illuminate the efficient use of system geometry, band edge in bath spectrum, and reservoir coherence to engineer system-reservoir interactions for robust SSE and SSC.

We propose a hybrid quantum system in which a magnet supporting nonreciprocal magnons, chiral magnons, or both mediates the dissipative and unidirectional coupling of spin qubits. By driving the qubits, the steady state of this qubit-qubit coupling scheme becomes the maximally entangled Bell state. We devise a protocol where the system converges to this entangled state and benchmark it including qubit decay and dephasing. The protocol is numerically tested on a hybrid system consisting of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers coupled to magnon surface modes of a yttrium iron garnet (YIG) film. We show that the dephasing time of the NV centers forms the bottleneck for achieving the entanglement of NV centers separated by a distance within the magnon coherence length. Our findings identify the key technological requirements and demonstrate a viable route toward steady-state entanglement of solid-state spins over distances of several microns using magnonic quantum networks, expanding the toolbox of magnonics for quantum information purposes.

We propose a quantum memory scheme to transfer and store the quantum state of a superconducting flux qubit (FQ) into the electron spin of a single nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center in diamond via yttrium iron garnet (YIG), a ferromagnet. Unlike an ensemble of NV centers, the YIG moderator can enhance the effective FQ-NV-center coupling strength without introducing additional appreciable decoherence. We derive the effective interaction between the FQ and the NV center by tracing out the degrees of freedom of the collective mode of the YIG spins. We demonstrate the transfer, storage, and retrieval procedures, taking into account the effects of spontaneous decay and pure dephasing. Using realistic experimental parameters for the FQ, NV center and YIG, we find that a combined transfer, storage, and retrieval fidelity higher than 0.9, with a long storage time of 10 ms, can be achieved. This hybrid system not only acts as a promising quantum memory, but also provides an example of enhanced coupling between various systems through collective degrees of freedom.

We propose a protocol where chiral magnons mediate a state transfer between two distant spin qubits. The protocol is implemented by varying the coupling between the spin qubits and the magnons in time, such that an arbitrary state is transferred from one qubit to the other. The modulation of the coupling is performed such that the two-spin-qubit state is kept as a dark state of the magnon bath, bypassing the associated losses. We show that the protocol can be realized on a hybrid system composed of two nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers coupled to the nonreciprocal and chiral magnon modes of an yttrium iron garnet (YIG) stripe. We propose two methods to achieve the time modulation of the NV-magnon coupling: i) the NV-magnet distance of both NV centers is varied; ii) the external magnetic field and the NV-magnet distance of one NV center are varied. We evaluate the implementability of both methods numerically, including the constraints on the temperature, and the dephasing time and minimal lifetime of the spin qubits required for high-fidelity state transfer. We find that using realistic experimental parameters, a state transfer between NV centers at a distance of several microns can be achieved with a fidelity

\gtrsim 0.95

. Our findings expand the toolbox of magnonics for quantum information purposes.

The search for optimal schemes and dissipative environments that can mediate long-range entanglement between two distant nitrogen-vacancy centers (NVCs) in diamond has been the subject of vigorous efforts over the past decade due to potential applications of such microscopic solid-state qubits in quantum sensing and quantum computing. However, stabilizing entanglement of NVCs into a {\em steady state} poses a significant challenge, typically requiring tuning the environment {\em out of equilibrium}. Here we microscopically and rigorously derive a Lindblad quantum master equation (QME) for a system of two {\em driven-dissipative} NVCs, where the drive is microwave radiation and dissipation is provided by a single magnetic bath that is kept in {\em equilibrium}. The jump operators within the Lindblad QME are expressed in terms of Keldysh Green's functions defined as correlators of dipolar field operators of the bath. This QME makes it possible to predict precise conditions for long-range and steady-state entanglement of two NVCs, while suggesting that a synthetic antiferromagnet could be an {\em optimal} choice for a dissipative environment. By using realistic parameters from available experiments, we estimate steady-state concurrence reaching

\mathcal{C}\simeq 0.28

for two NVCs separated by

\sim 100 \: \mathrm{nm}

.

Nitrogen-vacancy (NV) defect centers in diamond are strong candidates to generate entangled states in solid-state environments even at room temperature. Quantum correlations in spatially separated NV systems, for distances between NVs ranging from a few nanometers to a few kilometers, have been recently reported. In the present paper, we consider the entanglement transfer from two-mode microwave-squeezed (entangled) photons, which are in resonance with the two lowest NV electron spin states, to initially unentangled NV centers. We first demonstrate that the entanglement transfer process from quantum microwaves to isolated NV electron spins is feasible. We then proceed to extend the previous results to more realistic scenarios where

^{13}\mathrm{C}

nuclear spin baths surrounding each NV are included, quantifying the entanglement transfer efficiency and robustness under the effects of dephasing/dissipation noisy nuclear baths. Finally, we address the issue of assessing the possibility of entanglement transfer from the squeezed microwave light to two remote nuclear spins closely linked to different NV centers.

Abstract Nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond have been developed into essential hardware units for a wide range of solid-state-based quantum technology applications. While such applications require the long spin coherence times of the NV centers, they are often limited due to decoherence. In this study, we theoretically investigate the decoherence of NV-spin ensembles induced by nitrogen impurities (P1 centers), which are one of the most dominant and inevitable magnetic field noise sources in diamond. We combined cluster correlation expansion and density functional theory to compute the Hahn-echo spin-coherence time of the NV centers for a broad range of P1 concentrations. Results indicate a clear linear dependence of T2 on P1 concentrations on a log scale with a slope of −1.06, which is in excellent agreement with previous experimental results. The interplay between the Jahn–Teller effect and the hyperfine interaction in the P1 center plays a critical role in determining the bath dynamics and the resulting NV decoherence. Our results provide a theoretical upper bound for the NV-spin T2 over a wide range of P1 densities, serving as a key reference for materials optimization and spin bath characterization to develop highly coherent NV-based devices for quantum information technology.