A nitrogen-vacancy spin based molecular structure microscope using multiplexed projection reconstruction

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel NV spin-based molecular structure microscope that employs a projection-reconstruction method to determine 3D molecular structures from nuclear spin noise, validated through simulations.

Contribution

It presents a new projection-reconstruction technique for NV spin sensors to image single molecules in three dimensions, advancing nanoscale molecular imaging.

Findings

Successfully reconstructed the 3D structure of a molecular phantom

Validated the method with numerical simulations

Revealed the characteristic toroidal shape of ta-cyclodextrin

Abstract

Methods and techniques to measure and image beyond the state-of-the-art have always been influential in propelling basic science and technology. Because current technologies are venturing into nanoscopic and molecular-scale fabrication, atomic-scale measurement techniques are inevitable. One such emerging sensing method uses the spins associated with nitrogen-vacancy (NV) defects in diamond. The uniqueness of this NV sensor is its atomic size and ability to perform precision sensing under ambient conditions conveniently using light and microwaves (MW). These advantages have unique applications in nanoscale sensing and imaging of magnetic fields from nuclear spins in single biomolecules. During the last few years, several encouraging results have emerged towards the realization of an NV spin-based molecular structure microscope. Here, we present a projection-reconstruction method that retrieves the three-dimensional structure of a single molecule from the nuclear spin noise signatures. We validate this method using numerical simulations and reconstruct the structure of a molecular phantom \b{eta}-cyclodextrin, revealing the characteristic toroidal shape.