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arXiv:2502.02478 · Nano Letters

Enhanced Quantum Magnetometry with a Femtosecond Laser-Written Integrated Photonic Diamond Chip

Yanzhao Guo, Giulio Coccia, Vinaya K. Kavatamane, Argyro N. Giakoumaki, Anton N. Vetlugin, Roberta Ramponi, Cesare Soci, Paul E. Barclay, John Patrick Hadden, Anthony J. Bennett, Shane Michael Eaton

Published Apr 21, 2025• 13 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

High Resolution Image Download MS PowerPoint Slide Ensemble negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond are promising quantum sensors. To optimize their sensitivity, it is crucial to increase the number of spins sampled and maximize their coupling to the detection system without degrading their spin properties. In this paper, we demonstrate enhanced quantum magnetometry via a buried laser-written waveguide in diamond with 4.5 ppm nitrogen-vacancy centers. The waveguide-coupled nitrogen-vacancy centers exhibit spin coherence properties comparable to those of nitrogen-vacancy centers in pristine diamond. Waveguide-enhanced magnetic field sensing is demonstrated in a fiber-coupled integrated photonic chip, where probing an increased volume of high-density spins results in 63 pT·Hz –1/2 of DC magnetic field sensitivity and 20 pT·Hz –1/2 of AC magnetic field sensitivity. This on-chip sensor realizes at least an order of magnitude improvement in sensitivity compared to the conventional confocal detection setup, paving the way for high-sensitivity quantum magnetometry with nitrogen-vacancy ensembles.

DOI
10.1021/acs.nanolett.5c00148

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High Resolution Image Download MS PowerPoint Slide Ensemble negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond are promising quantum sensors. To optimize their sensitivity, it is crucial to increase the number of spins sampled and maximize their coupling to the detection system without degrading their spin properties. In this paper, we demonstrate enhanced quantum magnetometry via a buried laser-written waveguide in diamond with 4.5 ppm nitrogen-vacancy centers. The waveguide-coupled nitrogen-vacancy centers exhibit spin coherence properties comparable to those of nitrogen-vacancy centers in pristine diamond. Waveguide-enhanced magnetic field sensing is demonstrated in a fiber-coupled integrated photonic chip, where probing an increased volume of high-density spins results in 63 pT·Hz –1/2 of DC magnetic field sensitivity and 20 pT·Hz –1/2 of AC magnetic field sensitivity. This on-chip sensor realizes at least an order of magnitude improvement in sensitivity compared to the conventional confocal detection setup, paving the way for high-sensitivity quantum magnetometry with nitrogen-vacancy ensembles.
Diamond's nitrogen vacancy (NV) center is an optically active defect with long spin coherence times, showing great potential for both efficient nanoscale magnetometry and quantum information processing schemes. Recently, both the formation of buried 3D optical waveguides and high-quality single NVs in diamond were demonstrated using the versatile femtosecond laser-writing technique. However, until now, combining these technologies has been an outstanding challenge. In this Letter, we fabricate laser-written photonic waveguides in quantum grade diamond which are aligned to within micron resolution to single laser-written NVs, enabling an integrated platform providing deterministically positioned waveguide-coupled NVs. This fabrication technology opens the way toward on-chip optical routing of single photons between NVs and optically integrated spin-based sensing.
Quantum emitters, such as the negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond, are attractive for quantum technologies, such as nano-sensing, quantum information processing, and as a non-classical light source. However, it is still challenging to position individual emitters in photonic structures while preserving the spin coherence properties of the defect. In this paper, we investigate single and ensemble waveguide-integrated nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond fabricated by femtosecond laser writing followed by thermal annealing. Their spin coherence properties are systematically investigated and are shown to be comparable to native nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond. This method paves the way for the fabrication of coherent spins integrated within photonic devices.
Diamond's nitrogen vacancy (NV) center is an optically active defect with long spin coherence times, showing potential for efficient nanoscale magnetometry and entanglement schemes. Recently, both the formation of buried 3D optical waveguides and high quality single NVs in diamond were demonstrated using femtosecond laser-writing. However, until now, combining these technologies has been an outstanding challenge. In this work, we fabricate laser-written photonic circuits in diamond aligned within micron resolution to single laser-written NVs, enabling an integrated platform providing deterministically positioned waveguide-coupled NVs. This fabrication technology opens the way towards on-chip optical routing of single photons between NVs and optically integrated spin-based magnetometry.
Quantum sensors based on the nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center in diamond are leading platforms for high-sensitivity magnetometry with nanometer-scale resolution. State-of-the-art implementations, however, typically rely on bulky free-space optics or sacrifice spatial resolution to achieve high sensitivities. Here, we realize an integrated platform that overcomes this trade-off by fabricating monolithic whispering-gallery-mode cavities from a diamond chip containing a high density of NV centers and by evanescently coupling excitation to and photoluminescence from the cavity using a tapered optical fiber. Employing a lock-in-amplified Ramsey magnetometry scheme, we achieve a photon-shot-noise-limited DC sensitivity of 58 nT/Hz58\,\text{nT}/\sqrt{\text{Hz}}58nT/Hz​---the best sensitivity reported to date for a nanofabricated cavity-based magnetometer. The microscopic cavity size enables micrometer-scale spatial resolution and low-power operation, while fiber-coupling provides a path to scalable on-chip integration. Arrays of such sensors could enable NV-NMR spectroscopy of sub-nanoliter samples, new magnetic-gradient imaging architectures, and compact biosensing platforms.
Portable quantum sensors are crucial for developing practical quantum sensing and metrology applications. Fiberized nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamonds have emerged as one of the most promising candidates for compact quantum sensors. Nevertheless, due to the difficulty of coherently controlling the ensemble spin and noise suppression in a large volume, it often faces problems such as reduced sensitivity and narrowed bandwidth in integrated lensless applications. Here, we propose a fluorescence signal treatment method for NV spin ensemble manipulation by the exponential fitting of spin polarization processes, instead of integrating the photon emission. This enables spin state readout with a high signal-to-noise ratio and applies to the pulse sensing protocols for large-volume NV spins. Based on this, we further developed a fiberized diamond-based AC magnetometer. With an XY8-N dynamical decoupling pulse sequence, we demonstrated a T2-limited sensitivity of 8 pT/Hz and T1-limited frequency resolution of 90 Hz over a wide frequency band from 100 kHz to 3 MHz. This integrated diamond sensor leverages quantum coherence to achieve enhanced sensitivity in detecting AC magnetic fields, making it suitable for implementation in a compact and portable endoscopic sensor.
On-chip magnetic field sensing with nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond requires scalable integration of 3D waveguides into diamond substrates. Here, we develop a sensing array device with an ensemble of shallow implanted NV centers integrated with arrays of laser-written waveguides for excitation and readout of NV signals. Our approach enables an easy-to-operate on-chip magnetometer with a pixel size proportional to the Gaussian mode area of each waveguide. The performed continuous wave optically detected magnetic resonance on each waveguide gives an average dc-sensitivity value of (195±3) nT/Hz, which can be improved with lock-in-detection or pulsed-microwave sequences. We apply a magnetic field to separate the four NV crystallographic orientations of the magnetic resonance and then utilize a DC current through a straight wire antenna close to the waveguide to prove the sensor capabilities of our device. We reconstruct the complete vector magnetic field in the NV crystal frame using three different NV crystallographic orientations. By knowing the polarization axis of the waveguide mode, we project the magnetic field vector into the lab frame.