Determination of the 3D Magnetic Field Vector Orientation with NV Centers in Diamond

TL;DR

This paper presents a method to determine the full 3D orientation of static magnetic fields using individual NV centers in diamond, enhancing quantum magnetometry and NMR applications.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach combining photoluminescence anisotropy and pulsed ODMR to reconstruct magnetic field orientation without special prerequisites.

Findings

Successfully reconstructs 3D magnetic field orientation.

Applicable to arbitrary static magnetic fields.

Enables improved NMR and EPR measurements.

Abstract

Absolute knowledge about the magnetic field orientation plays a crucial role in single spin-based quantum magnetometry and the application toward spin-based quantum computation. In this paper, we reconstruct the 3D orientation of an arbitrary static magnetic field with individual nitrogen vacancy (NV) centers in diamond. We determine the polar and the azimuthal angle of the magnetic field orientation relative to the diamond lattice. Therefore, we use information from the photoluminescence anisotropy of the NV, together with a simple pulsed Optically Detected Magnetic Resonance (ODMR) experiment. Our nanoscopic magnetic field determination is generally applicable and does not rely on special prerequisites such as strongly coupled nuclear spins or particular controllable fields. Hence, our presented results open up new paths for precise NMR reconstructions and the modulation of the electron-electron spin interaction in EPR measurements by specifically tailored magnetic fields.