We demonstrate plasmon-enhanced single photon emission by NV centers in diamond nanoposts embedded in silver. The resulting hybrid structures exhibit six-fold enhancements in spontaneous emission with increased single photon counts.
We demonstrate an approach, based on plasmonic apertures and gratings, to enhance the radiative decay rate of single nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond while simultaneously improving their collection efficiency. Our structures are based on metallic resonators formed by surrounding sub-wavelength diamond nanoposts with a silver film, which can enhance the spontaneous emission rate of an embedded NV center. However, the collection efficiency of emitted photons remains low due to losses to surface plasmons and reflections at the diamond-air interface. In this work, we mitigate photon losses into these channels by incorporating grating structures into the plasmonic cavity system.
Unlocking the quantum potential of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamonds has led to innovative advancements in sensing applications. By coupling NV centers with plasmonic nanostructures, ultrasensitive biolabels are envisioned. To this end, we exploit DNA self-assembly to create hybrid plasmonic nanodiamonds, featuring a closed nanocavity encapsulating a single nanodiamond. Correlated spectroscopy reveals enhanced brightness and emission rates, crucial for quantum sensing. This synergy between plasmonics and diamond fluorescence augments photon emission intensity and accelerates emission rates, enabling improved temporal resolution. These nanodiamonds hold promise as stable single-photon sources and versatile platforms for probing quantum effects in biology. This talk highlights the development, properties, and potential applications of these nanodiamonds, bridging quantum sensing and biomedicine, and fostering transformative changes in biophotonics.
We propose a novel source of non-classical light consisting of plasmonic aperture with single-crystal diamond containing a single Nitrogen-Vacancy (NV) color center. Theoretical calculations of optimal structures show that these devices can simultaneously enhance optical pumping by a factor of 7, spontaneous emission rates by Fp~50 (Purcell factor), and offer collection efficiencies up to 40%. These excitation and collection enhancements occur over a broad range of wavelengths (~30 nm), and are independently tunable with device geometry, across the excitation (~530 nm) and emission (~600-800 nm) spectrum of the NV center. Implementing this system with top-down techniques in bulk diamond crystals will provide a scalable architecture for a myriad of diamond NV center applications.