Influence of a static magnetic field on the photoluminescence of an ensemble of Nitrogen-Vacancy color centers in a diamond single-crystal

TL;DR

This study explores how a static magnetic field affects the photoluminescence and spin states of nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond, revealing magnetic field-induced modifications in radiative lifetime and spin state mixing.

Contribution

It provides experimental and simulation insights into magnetic field effects on NV centers' photoluminescence and spin dynamics, including lifetime variations and state mixing.

Findings

Magnetic field influences NV center radiative lifetime.

External magnetic field causes mixing of spin states.

Experimental results align with simulations.

Abstract

We investigate the electron spin resonance of an ensemble of Nitrogen-Vacancy (NV) color centers in a bulk diamond crystal. The four possible orientations of the NV-center in the lattice lead to different dependences on the magnitude and the orientation of an external static magnetic field. Experimental results obtained with a continuous microwave excitation are in good agreement with simulations. In addition, we observe that the average radiative lifetime of the NV color center is also modified when the external magnetic field is applied. This variation is explained by the mixing between mS = 0 and mS = $\pm$1 spin states of the NV-center with different radiative lifetimes, due to magnetic coupling. These results are of interest for a broad range of applications, such as spin-resonance-based magnetometry with a high-density ensemble of NV-centers