Strain coupling of a mechanical resonator to a single quantum emitter in diamond

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates a hybrid quantum device where mechanical vibrations in a diamond cantilever control the optical states of a single nitrogen-vacancy center, enabling advanced quantum manipulation and sensing.

Contribution

It introduces a monolithic hybrid quantum system with strong strain coupling to NV centers, enabling dynamic control of quantum states via mechanical resonator vibrations.

Findings

Strain coupling exceeding 10 GHz to NV centers.

Dynamic control of NV optical transitions using mechanical vibrations.

Matching frequencies and polarizations of separate NV centers.

Abstract

The recent maturation of hybrid quantum devices has led to significant enhancements in the functionality of a wide variety of quantum systems. In particular, harnessing mechanical resonators for manipulation and control has expanded the use of two-level systems in quantum information science and quantum sensing. In this letter, we report on a monolithic hybrid quantum device in which strain fields associated with resonant vibrations of a diamond cantilever dynamically control the optical transitions of a single nitrogen-vacancy (NV) defect center in diamond. We quantitatively characterize the strain coupling to the orbital states of the NV center, and with mechanical driving, we observe NV-strain couplings exceeding 10 GHz. Furthermore, we use this strain-mediated coupling to match the frequency and polarization dependence of the zero-phonon lines of two spatially separated and initially distinguishable NV centers. The experiments demonstrated here mark an important step toward engineering a quantum device capable of realizing and probing the dynamics of non-classical states of mechanical resonators, spin-systems, and photons.