ODMR on Single TR12 Centers in Diamond

TL;DR

This study investigates the optical and magnetic properties of TR12 centers in diamond, revealing their potential for quantum sensing and information processing through detailed spectroscopic analysis at room temperature.

Contribution

The paper provides the first comprehensive ODMR characterization of TR12 centers, including their energy level structure, orientation, and Jahn-Teller effects, advancing their application in quantum technologies.

Findings

Strong ODMR signals observed at room temperature.

Identified twelve inequivalent orientations of TR12 centers.

Detected static Jahn-Teller effect through fluorescence switching.

Abstract

Point defects in insulators are considered promising candidates for quantum technologies. In keeping with this, we present an extensive optically-detected magnetic resonance (ODMR) study at room-temperature on individual TR12 centers (ZPL at 471nm), which are known in the literature since 1956. In this work we found TR12 centers to show a strong ODMR signal under optical saturation. These observed defects were created in high-purity epitaxial layers of diamond by standard irradiation and annealing processes. From the analysis of the ODMR spectra along with antibunching measurements and coherent population trapping, we proposed the energy level structure of TR12 center, consisting of ground state and excited state singlets complemented by a metastable triplet in between. Mapping the fluorescence dependence of the center on an external magnetic field and on the polarization of laser excitation, allows us to identify twelve inequivalent orientations for TR12 centers. This includes the exact orientations of the dipole transition and the triplet axes in the diamond lattice in full agreement with the results of modeling based on the proposed level structure. Furthermore, a static Jahn-Teller effect was detected through fluorescence switching between two levels at low optical excitation power, directly observable in the real-time fluorescence signal for various polarization of laser excitation. Based on these results we discuss the prospects of the TR12 center in diamond for quantum sensing and quantum information processing.