Polarizing the electronic and nuclear spin of the NV-center in diamond in arbitrary magnetic fields: analysis of the optical pumping process

TL;DR

This paper presents an optimized optical pumping scheme for polarizing electronic and nuclear spins in a nitrogen vacancy center in diamond, crucial for quantum information applications, analyzed through a rate equation model and experimental measurements.

Contribution

It introduces a detailed rate equation model and experimental analysis for efficient polarization of NV-center spins using laser, microwave, and radio-frequency pulses.

Findings

Optimized laser pulse parameters for spin polarization.

Experimental validation of the rate equation model.

Quantitative determination of spin state populations.

Abstract

Initializing a set of qubits to a given quantum state is a basic prerequisite for the physical implementation of quantum-information protocols. Here, we discuss the polarization of the electronic and nuclear spin in a single nitrogen vacancy center in diamond. Our initialization scheme uses a sequence of laser, microwave and radio-frequency pulses, and we optimize the pumping parameters of the laser pulse. A rate equation model is formulated that explains the effect of the laser pulse on the spin system. We have experimentally determined the population of the relevant spin states as a function of the duration of the laser pulse by measuring Rabi oscillations and Ramsey-type free-induction decays. The experimental data have been analyzed to determine the pumping rates of the rate equation model.