Electron spin resonance of nitrogen-vacancy centers in optically trapped nanodiamonds

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates the control and ESR readout of nitrogen-vacancy centers in nanodiamonds trapped optically, enabling magnetic sensing in fluidic environments despite particle motion and random orientation.

Contribution

It introduces a method for ESR measurement of NV centers in freely moving nanodiamonds, facilitating in-solution quantum sensing applications.

Findings

Successful ESR detection in optically trapped nanodiamonds

Modeling of ESR spectra accounting for particle dynamics

Estimated magnetic field sensitivity of ~50 μT/Hz^1/2

Abstract

Using an optical tweezers apparatus, we demonstrate three-dimensional control of nanodiamonds in solution with simultaneous readout of ground-state electron-spin resonance (ESR) transitions in an ensemble of diamond nitrogen-vacancy (NV) color centers. Despite the motion and random orientation of NV centers suspended in the optical trap, we observe distinct peaks in the measured ESR spectra qualitatively similar to the same measurement in bulk. Accounting for the random dynamics, we model the ESR spectra observed in an externally applied magnetic field to enable d.c. magnetometry in solution. We estimate the d.c. magnetic field sensitivity based on variations in ESR line shapes to be ~50 microTesla/Hz^1/2. This technique may provide a pathway for spin-based magnetic, electric, and thermal sensing in fluidic environments and biophysical systems inaccessible to existing scanning probe techniques.