Magnetic Field Sensing with Nitrogen-
Vacancy Color Centers in Diamond
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Pham, Linh My. 2013. Magnetic Field Sensing with Nitrogen-Vacancy
Color Centers in Diamond. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University.
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http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:11051173
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Magnetic Field Sensing with Nitrogen-Vacancy
Color Centers in Diamond
A dissertation presented
by
Linh My Pham
to
The School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
in partial fulllment of the requirements
for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
in the subject of
Applied Physics
Harvard University
Cambridge, Massachusetts
May 2013
©2013 - Linh My Pham
All rights reserved.
Dissertation Advisors: Ronald Walsworth, Marko Lon£ar
Linh My Pham
Magnetic Field Sensing with Nitrogen-Vacancy Color Centers
in Diamond
Abstract
In recent years, the nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center has emerged as a promising
magnetic sensor capable of measuring magnetic elds with high sensitivity and spa-
tial resolution under ambient conditions. This combination of characteristics allows
NV magnetometers to probe magnetic structures and systems that were previously
inaccessible with alternative magnetic sensing technologies
This dissertation presents and discusses a number of the initial eorts to demon-
strate and improve NV magnetometry.
In particular, a wide-eld CCD based NV
magnetic eld imager capable of micron-scale spatial resolution is demonstrated; and
magnetic eld alignment, preferential NV orientation, and multipulse dynamical de-
coupling techniques are explored for enhancing magnetic sensitivity. The further
application of dynamical decoupling control sequences as a spectral probe to extract
information about the dynamics of the NV spin environment is also discussed; such
information may be useful for determining optimal diamond sample parameters for
dierent applications. Finally, several proposed and recently demonstrated applica-
tions which take advantage of NV magnetometers' sensitivity and spatial resolution at
room temperature are presented, with particular focus on bio-magnetic eld imaging.
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iv
Contents
Title Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Abstract . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
List of Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Citations to Previously Published Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
i
iii
v
ix
xi
xiii
1 NV Background
1.1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.2 NV Physical Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.3 NV Formation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.3.1 NV incorporation during CVD synthesis
. . . . . . . . . . . .
1.3.2 Nitrogen ion implantation and annealing . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.3.3 N-to-NV conversion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.4 NV Electronic Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.5 Coherent manipulation of NV spin state
1.5.1 Continuous-Wave Electron Spin Resonance Spectroscopy . . .
1.5.2 Rabi Nutations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.6 NV spin dephasing, decoherence, and relaxation . . . . . . . . . . . .
∗
1.6.1 T
2 spin dephasing time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.6.2 T2 spin decoherence time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.6.3 T1 spin relaxation time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2 NV Magnetometry
2.1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2.2 DC magnetometry: ESR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2.2.1 Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sensitivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2.2.2
2.2.3
Initial demonstrations
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2.3 DC magnetometry: Ramsey sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2.3.1 Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1
1
2
4
5
6
9
10
14
15
16
18
20
23
27
29
29
31
31
33
34
36
36
v
Contents
2.3.2
2.3.3
Sensitivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Initial demonstrations
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2.4 AC magnetometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2.4.1 Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2.4.2
Sensitivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Initial demonstration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2.4.3
2.5 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
38
39
39
39
43
44
45
3 NV Spin Coherence Dependence on Magnetic Field Misalignment 47
47
49
51
55
3.1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3.2 NV13C hyperne interactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3.3 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3.4 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4 NV Magnetic Field Imaging
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4.1
4.2 Experimental setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4.3 Micron-scale magnetic eld variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4.4 Wide-eld magnetic eld patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4.5 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5 Preferential NV Orientation
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5.1
5.2 Preferential NV orientation in {100} samples . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5.2.1 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5.2.2 Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5.3 Enhanced AC magnetometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5.3.1 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5.3.2 Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5.4 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
57
57
58
59
63
66
67
67
69
69
71
74
74
76
80
6 Dynamical Decoupling
6.3 Dynamical decoupling at low temperature
6.1 Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
6.2 Dynamical decoupling at room temperature
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
6.2.1 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
6.3.1 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
6.3.2 Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
6.4 Multipulse magnetometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sensitivity analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
81
83
86
86
90
91
94
98
6.4.1
98
6.4.2 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
6.5 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
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Contents
7 Spectral Decomposition
7.1.1
7.1.2
7.1.3
106
7.1 Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Spectral decomposition technique . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Spectral decomposition deconvolution procedure . . . . . . . . 108
Spectral function of a spin bath . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
7.2 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Sample C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Samples F and G . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
7.3 Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
7.3.1
Spin bath suppression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
7.3.2 Ensemble averaging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
7.4 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
7.2.1
7.2.2
8 Outlook
125
8.1 Sensitivity of an NV magnetic sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
8.1.1 Measurement contrast
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
8.1.2 Number of photons collected per measurement . . . . . . . . . 127
8.1.3 Coherence Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
8.2 Spatial resolution of an NV magnetic sensor
8.3 Discussion of trade-os . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
8.4 Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
A NV Magnetic Sensitivity
137
A.1 DC magnetometry: ESR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
A.2 DC magnetometry: Ramsey sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
A.3 AC magnetometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
B Experimental Apparatus
146
B.1 CCD based wide-eld uorescence microscope . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
B.2 Scanning confocal microscope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
B.3 Low temperature setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
C Coherence Time T2 Theoretical Limit
D Diamond Samples
Bibliography
152
157
161
vii