Coherent control of solid state nuclear spin nano-ensembles

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates the fabrication and coherent control of a nanoscale $^{13}$C nuclear spin ensemble in diamond, advancing quantum sensing and quantum simulation capabilities in solid state systems.

Contribution

It introduces a method to coherently control a small nuclear spin ensemble in diamond using NV centers, enabling quantum simulation applications.

Findings

Successful fabrication of a $^{13}$C nuclear spin layer in diamond.

Demonstration of coherent control via Rabi oscillations, Ramsey, and Hahn echo.

First steps towards nuclear spin based quantum simulator.

Abstract

Detecting and controlling nuclear spin nano-ensembles is crucial for the further development of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and for the emerging solid state quantum technology. Here we present the fabrication of a $\approx$ 1 nanometre thick diamond layer consisting of $^{13}$C nuclear spins doped with Nitrogen-Vacancy centres (NV) embedded in a spin-free $^{12}$C crystal matrix. A single NV in the vicinity of the layer is used for polarization of the $^{13}$C spins and the readout of their magnetization. We demonstrate a method for coherent control of few tens of nuclear spins by using radio frequency pulses and show the basic coherent control experiments - Rabi oscillations, Ramsey spectroscopy and Hahn echo, though any NMR pulse sequence can be implemented. The results shown present a first steps towards the realization of a nuclear spin based quantum simulator.