Color centers in diamond are attracting an ever-growing interest in quantum optics, quantum information and quantum sensing, due to their appealing photo-physical properties. Promising new perspectives are disclosed by their interplay with electromagnetic fields in several aspects, namely: electroluminescent emission, charge state stabilization and electrostatic field sensing.
Color centers in diamond are attracting an ever-growing interest in quantum optics, quantum information and quantum sensing, due to their appealing photo-physical properties. Promising new perspectives are disclosed by their interplay with electromagnetic fields in several aspects, namely: electroluminescent emission, charge state stabilization and electrostatic field sensing.
Color centres in diamond represent a very interesting system for realizing single photon emitters, even at room temperature, in particular are attracting an ever-growing interest in quantum optics, quantum information and quantum sensing, due to their appealing photo-physical properties combined with ease of access and manipulation in a solid state system characterized by high transparency and structural stability. Literally hundreds of optically active color centers can be created and controlled in the diamond matrix, to be employed either as bright and stable single-photon sources or individual spin systems with optical readout, with record performances even at room temperature. In concurrence with the remarkable results obtained at the state of the art on the exploitation of the unique properties of the negatively-charged nitrogen-vacancy complex (NV), new and appealing color centers are continuously being discovered and characterized. In the present contribution, the most recent results obtained by a collaboration among the Italian National Institutes of Metrologic Research (INRiM), the University of Torino and the Italian National Institutes of Nuclear Physics (INFN) will be overviewed and critically assessed in their future perspectives.
The physical properties of diamond crystals, such as color or electrical conductivity, can be controlled via impurities. In particular, when doped with nitrogen, optically active nitrogen-vacancy centers (NV), can be induced. The center is an outstanding quantum spin system that enables, under ambient conditions, optical initialization, readout, and coherent microwave control with applications in sensing and quantum information. Under optical and radio frequency excitation, the Zeeman splitting of the degenerate states allows the quantitative measurement of external magnetic fields with high sensitivity. This study provides a pedagogical introduction to the properties of the NV centers as well as a step-by-step process to develop and test a simple magnetic quantum sensor based on color centers with significant potential for the development of highly compact multisensor systems.
The physical properties of diamond crystals, such as color or electrical conductivity, can be controlled via impurities.In particular, when doped with nitrogen and under certain conditions, optically active nitrogen-vacany centers (NV) can be induced.The center is an outstanding quantum spin system that enables, under ambient conditions, optical initialization, readout, and coherent microwave control with applications in sensing and quantum information.Under optical and radio frequency excitation, the Zeeman splitting of the degenerate states allows the quantitative measurement of external magnetic fields with high sensitivity.This study provides a pedagogical introduction to the properties of the NV centers as well as a step-by-step process to develop and test, a simple magnetic quantum sensor based on color centers with large potential for the development of highly compact multi-sensor systems.
Optical sources that deliver single photons on demand play a key role in quantum cryptography and optical quantum computations. At present, color centers in wide-bandgap semiconductors, such as the nitrogen-vacancy (NV) and silicon-vacancy (SiV) centers in diamond, are considered to be the most promising candidates for practical quantum information applications owing to their unique emission properties at room temperature. However, for practical reasons, single-photon sources should be pumped electrically, which is required for integrability, scalability, and energy efficiency. However, diamond and related wide-bandgap semiconductor materials are at the interface between insulators and semiconductors, which makes electrical excitation of color centers very challenging. Here, we report on our progress in the understanding of single-photon electroluminescence of color centers in diamond, discuss different factors affecting the brightness of these emitter under electrical excitation, and study how to improve the performance of electrically- pumped single-photon sources based on color centers in diamond.
Atomic scale defects in diamond are emerging as next-generation quantum sensors. One such defect is the nitrogen vacancy (NV) center which possesses artificial atom-like properties making it a strong contender for a room temperature solid state qubit. These spin defects are optically addressable by studying their optically detected magnetic resonance spectra (ODMR). The spin states can be initialized, controlled, and read out by a shining laser. The photoluminescence spectra contain information on the external magnetic field, electric field, temperature, etc. Thus, this type of multimodal sensor is exigent in various fields of research viz. chemistry, materials science, biology, and fundamental physics. In today's world where energy-related products are booming, deployment of quantum sensors can expedite the development. Based on existing works, this paper makes an attempt to identify the applications of color centers in diamond for energy sectors. We have highlighted the efficacy of quantum diamond sensors in the oil and gas industry, battery research, and photovoltaics. In addition, a summary of the structural and quantum properties of defects in diamond, synthesis of diamond, protocols for optical detection of spin states, different types of color centers, etc., is presented.
Quantum Information
Certain defects in diamond are among the most promising physical implementations of qubits, the building blocks of quantum computers. However, identifying a defect with balanced properties is tricky: Nitrogen vacancy centers have a long lifetime but comparatively poor optical properties, whereas negatively charged silicon vacancy centers have the opposite characteristics. Rose et al. used careful materials engineering to stabilize the neutral charge state of silicon vacancy centers and found that they combine long coherence times with excellent optical properties.
Science , this issue p. [60][1]
[1]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.aao0290