Theory of Spin-Conserving Excitation of the $N-V^-$ Center in Diamond

TL;DR

This paper uses advanced computational methods to accurately model the electronic excitation processes of the N-V- center in diamond, crucial for quantum and biomedical applications.

Contribution

It provides a detailed theoretical understanding of spin-conserving excitation in the N-V- center using hybrid density-functional theory.

Findings

Reproduces zero-phonon line and Stokes shifts accurately

Provides a complete picture of excitation processes

Enhances understanding of N-V- center's electronic states

Abstract

The negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy defect ($N-V^-$ center) in diamond is an important atomic-scale structure that can be used as a qubit in quantum computing and as a marker in biomedical applications. Its usefulness relies on the ability to optically excite electrons between well-defined gap states, which requires clear and detailed understanding of the relevant states and excitation processes. Here we show that by using hybrid density-functional-theory calculations in a large supercell we can reproduce the zero-phonon line and the Stokes and anti-Stokes shifts, yielding a complete picture of the spin-conserving excitation of this defect.