High spatial resolution optical sensing with nitrogen vacancy center

Bryce Kobrin, Maxwell Block, Andrey Jarmola +8 more

Xiang-Dong Chen, Dengfeng Li, Y. H. Zheng +6 more

High spatial resolution and low perturbation are required for mapping the electromagnetic field at the nanoscale, to provide crucial information about local light-matter interaction. Using optical superresolution microscopy for detection via a nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond, this work demonstrates far-field noninvasive sensing of the local electromagnetic field with high accuracy and a spatial resolution of approximately 50 nm. As the nitrogen-vacancy center is sensitive to various physical quantities, a multifunctional far-field quantum nanoscope is anticipated.

Long‐Kun Shan, Tong-Tian Weng, Mengqi Ma +7 more

Wide-field quantum sensing and imaging with solid-state spins has attracted wide interest for its ability to detect relative physical quantities with high sensitivity at nanoscale. However, the optical diffraction limit hinders the improvement in spatial resolution. In this work, we utilize blind structured illumination microscopy to perform wide-field quantum sensing with nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center in diamond. Without the requirement of prior knowledge of excitation light field, the spatial resolution of NV centers imaging is enhanced by 1.8-fold in comparison with conventional microscopy. Combined with spin manipulation and detection, super-resolution NV center sensing is subsequently performed to reveal the optical and electrical properties of nanodevice. The high spatial resolution and feasibility of this work will promote the applications of quantum sensing in nanoscience.

Wen Li Yang, Ping Wang

Kyu Ri Choi, Mohammed Zia Jalaludeen, Samuel Begumya +7 more

Structured illumination microscopy (SIM) allows for optical imaging with spatial resolution that surpasses the diffraction limit. To further enhance this super-resolution capability, we present a multimodal approach that integrates SIM with optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR) of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond-a platform considered one of the most promising platforms for quantum sensing and computing. Both theoretical modeling and experimental results reveal that diamond's high refractive index supports finer structured illumination patterns, thereby accessing higher spatial frequencies and yielding improved resolution. This combined strategy not only enhances NV center localization precision and achieves sub-100-nm resolution but also facilitates spin coherence analysis. Leveraging the high refractive index of diamond in SIM thus offers a powerful pathway toward advancing quantum applications at the nanoscale.

Tim Hoehn, Satcher Hsieh, P. Bhattacharyya +15 more