Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

Applied Physics Express

Enhancing photon collection from single shallow nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond nanopillars for quantum heterodyne measurements

Akirabha Chanuntranont, Kazuki Otani, Daiki Saito, Yuki Ueda, Masato Tsugawa, Shuntaro Usui, Yuto Miyake, Tokuyuki Teraji, Shinobu Onoda, Takahiro Shinada, Hiroshi Kawarada, Takashi Tanii

Published Aug 1, 2023• 4 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Abstract The developments in quantum sensing protocols and nano-photonic waveguides are merged to improve the performance of single nitrogen-vancancy (NV) centers in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) sensing. Nanopillars are designed with NV centers placed approximately 5 nm below the top facet and fabricated through a simple procedure, suitable for mass production. Fluorescence intensities from these nanopillars are 3.5 times greater than that of single shallow NV centers embedded in unstructured flat diamond. Quantum heterodyne measurements of an alternating magnetic field are performed with these nanopillars and evidence of improved peak clarity in the frequency spectrum is shown.

DOI
10.35848/1882-0786/acede9

Related papers

Enhancing photon collection from single shallow nitrogen-vacancy centres in diamond nanopillars for quantum heterodyne measurements

Akirabha Chanuntranont, Kazuki Otani, Daiki Saito +9 more

The developments in quantum sensing protocols and nano-photonic waveguides are merged to improve the performance of single nitrogen-vancancy (NV) centers in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) sensing. Nanopillars are designed with NV centers placed approximately 5 nm below the top facet and fabricated through a simple procedure, suitable for mass production. Fluorescence intensities from these nanopillars are 3.5 times greater than that of single shallow NV centers embedded in unstructured flat diamond. Quantum heterodyne measurements of an alternating magnetic field are performed with these nanopillars and evidence of improved peak clarity in the frequency spectrum is shown.

•Feb 28, 2024•0 citations

光子計測に対する直接的モデル構築と光学的改良によるダイヤモンド中の単一窒素-空孔中心を用いたNMR計測のリアルタイム化に向けた研究

Akirabha Chanuntranont

The nitrogen vacancy (NV) center in diamond is explored as a nanoscale nuclear magnetic resonance (nano-NMR) sensor.This work improves upon the current state of the art of nano-NMR with single NV centers in three ways.First, the fluorescent signal from single NV centers in diamond is enhanced with nanopillars optimized for use with NV centers 5 nm below the diamond surface for nano-NMR sensing.Second, the conventional parametric model used to analyze measurement data obtained by the widely used XY8nano-NMR pulse sequence is modified to reflect the physical nature of the data more accurately by replacing the static model with a time-dependent photon emissions process representation of the data.Third, an efficient method to process data from the recently developed quantum heterodyne (qdyne) pulse sequence is proposed, which removes the need to perform auxiliary measurements and is also effective as a real-time litmus test for the detection of NMR signals in qdyne measurements.

•Mar 15, 2026•0 citations

Photonic nano-structures on (111)-oriented diamond

Elke Neu, Patrick Appel, Marc Ganzhorn +7 more

We demonstrate the fabrication of single-crystalline diamond nanopillars on a (111)-oriented chemical vapor deposited diamond substrate. This crystal orientation offers optimal coupling of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center emission to the nanopillar mode and is thus advantageous over previous approaches. We characterize single native NV centers in these nanopillars and find one of the highest reported saturated fluorescence count rates in single crystalline diamond in excess of 106 counts per second. We show that our nano-fabrication procedure conserves the preferential alignment as well as the spin coherence of the NVs in our structures. Our results will enable a new generation of highly sensitive probes for NV magnetometry and pave the way toward photonic crystals with optimal orientation of the NV center's emission dipole.

arXiv:1403.6063•Applied Physics Letters•Apr 14, 2014•108 citations

An optimized diamond nanopillar for enhanced NV-center collection efficiency

Tianqi Zhu, J. Rhensius, Erika Janitz +3 more

A diamond nanopillar with a single nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center at the apex can serve as a promising quantum sensor. Our work is focused on improving the photon collection efficiency to achieve higher sensitivity.

Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics•Jan 1, 2022•0 citations

A coherence-protection scheme for quantum sensors based on ultra-shallow single nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond

Anton Pershin, András Tárkányi, Vladimir Verkhovlyuk +2 more

High spatial resolution quantum sensing of near-surface nitrogen vacancy (NV) centers in diamond has enabled detection of magnetic, electrical, and thermal signals at the nanoscale. At depths of just a few nanometers, NV centers serve as localized quantum probes for external spins or low-dimensional materials, but their proximity to the surface also enhances decoherence caused by fluctuating nuclear spins. While advances in surface engineering have stabilized the charge state of NV centers at depths of tens of nanometers, achieving both ultra-shallow implantation (0.5-2 nm) and long-term spin coherence remains a central challenge. In this work, we show using first-principles modeling that, by exploiting the interaction of surface-induced strain and weak dc magnetic fields, the spin coherence times of 1-nm-deep NV centers can be greatly improved near the spin-phonon-confined regime at room temperature in 12C-rich diamonds. We also demonstrate that this protocol benefits ~ 10-nm-deep NV centers in natural diamond, enabling vector magnetometry at the nanoscale. Shallow NV centers in diamond are advantageous for quantum sensing but suffer from surface magnetic noise. Using first-principles simulations supported by experiments, the authors show that a combination of small magnetic fields and surface strain can significantly enhance spin coherence of 1 nm-deep NV centers.

arXiv:2501.00180•Nature Communications•Nov 6, 2025•9 citations

Multicone Diamond Waveguides for Nanoscale Quantum Sensing

Tianqi Zhu, J. Rhensius, Konstantin Herb +4 more

The long-lived electronic spin of the nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center in diamonds is a promising quantum sensor for detecting nanoscopic magnetic and electric fields in various environments. However, the poor signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of prevalent optical spin-readout techniques presents a critical challenge in improving measurement sensitivity. Here, we address this limitation by coupling individual NVs to optimized diamond nanopillars, thereby enhancing the collection efficiency of fluorescence. Guided by near-field optical simulations, we predict improved performance for tall (≥5 μm) pillars with tapered sidewalls. This is subsequently verified by fabricating and characterizing a representative set of structures using a newly developed nanofabrication process. We observe increased SNR for optimized devices, owing to improved emission collimation and directionality. Promisingly, these devices are compatible with low-numerical-aperture collection optics and a reduced tip radius, reducing experimental overhead and facilitating improved spatial resolution for scanning applications.

arXiv:2306.02966•Nano Letters•Nov 7, 2023•19 citations
Abstract The developments in quantum sensing protocols and nano-photonic waveguides are merged to improve the performance of single nitrogen-vancancy (NV) centers in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) sensing. Nanopillars are designed with NV centers placed approximately 5 nm below the top facet and fabricated through a simple procedure, suitable for mass production. Fluorescence intensities from these nanopillars are 3.5 times greater than that of single shallow NV centers embedded in unstructured flat diamond. Quantum heterodyne measurements of an alternating magnetic field are performed with these nanopillars and evidence of improved peak clarity in the frequency spectrum is shown.
The developments in quantum sensing protocols and nano-photonic waveguides are merged to improve the performance of single nitrogen-vancancy (NV) centers in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) sensing. Nanopillars are designed with NV centers placed approximately 5 nm below the top facet and fabricated through a simple procedure, suitable for mass production. Fluorescence intensities from these nanopillars are 3.5 times greater than that of single shallow NV centers embedded in unstructured flat diamond. Quantum heterodyne measurements of an alternating magnetic field are performed with these nanopillars and evidence of improved peak clarity in the frequency spectrum is shown.
The nitrogen vacancy (NV) center in diamond is explored as a nanoscale nuclear magnetic resonance (nano-NMR) sensor.This work improves upon the current state of the art of nano-NMR with single NV centers in three ways.First, the fluorescent signal from single NV centers in diamond is enhanced with nanopillars optimized for use with NV centers 5 nm below the diamond surface for nano-NMR sensing.Second, the conventional parametric model used to analyze measurement data obtained by the widely used XY8nano-NMR pulse sequence is modified to reflect the physical nature of the data more accurately by replacing the static model with a time-dependent photon emissions process representation of the data.Third, an efficient method to process data from the recently developed quantum heterodyne (qdyne) pulse sequence is proposed, which removes the need to perform auxiliary measurements and is also effective as a real-time litmus test for the detection of NMR signals in qdyne measurements.
We demonstrate the fabrication of single-crystalline diamond nanopillars on a (111)-oriented chemical vapor deposited diamond substrate. This crystal orientation offers optimal coupling of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center emission to the nanopillar mode and is thus advantageous over previous approaches. We characterize single native NV centers in these nanopillars and find one of the highest reported saturated fluorescence count rates in single crystalline diamond in excess of 106 counts per second. We show that our nano-fabrication procedure conserves the preferential alignment as well as the spin coherence of the NVs in our structures. Our results will enable a new generation of highly sensitive probes for NV magnetometry and pave the way toward photonic crystals with optimal orientation of the NV center's emission dipole.
High spatial resolution quantum sensing of near-surface nitrogen vacancy (NV) centers in diamond has enabled detection of magnetic, electrical, and thermal signals at the nanoscale. At depths of just a few nanometers, NV centers serve as localized quantum probes for external spins or low-dimensional materials, but their proximity to the surface also enhances decoherence caused by fluctuating nuclear spins. While advances in surface engineering have stabilized the charge state of NV centers at depths of tens of nanometers, achieving both ultra-shallow implantation (0.5-2 nm) and long-term spin coherence remains a central challenge. In this work, we show using first-principles modeling that, by exploiting the interaction of surface-induced strain and weak dc magnetic fields, the spin coherence times of 1-nm-deep NV centers can be greatly improved near the spin-phonon-confined regime at room temperature in 12C-rich diamonds. We also demonstrate that this protocol benefits ~ 10-nm-deep NV centers in natural diamond, enabling vector magnetometry at the nanoscale. Shallow NV centers in diamond are advantageous for quantum sensing but suffer from surface magnetic noise. Using first-principles simulations supported by experiments, the authors show that a combination of small magnetic fields and surface strain can significantly enhance spin coherence of 1 nm-deep NV centers.
The long-lived electronic spin of the nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center in diamonds is a promising quantum sensor for detecting nanoscopic magnetic and electric fields in various environments. However, the poor signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of prevalent optical spin-readout techniques presents a critical challenge in improving measurement sensitivity. Here, we address this limitation by coupling individual NVs to optimized diamond nanopillars, thereby enhancing the collection efficiency of fluorescence. Guided by near-field optical simulations, we predict improved performance for tall (≥5 μm) pillars with tapered sidewalls. This is subsequently verified by fabricating and characterizing a representative set of structures using a newly developed nanofabrication process. We observe increased SNR for optimized devices, owing to improved emission collimation and directionality. Promisingly, these devices are compatible with low-numerical-aperture collection optics and a reduced tip radius, reducing experimental overhead and facilitating improved spatial resolution for scanning applications.