Spin Read-out of the Motion of Levitated Electrically Rotated Diamonds

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates electrically driven stable rotation of levitated diamonds with NV centers at high speeds, enabling precise control of their spin states and opening new avenues for quantum sensing and macroscopic quantum experiments.

Contribution

It introduces a novel electrically driven rotation method for levitated micro-particles, including diamonds with NV centers, achieving high rotational speeds and stable control of internal spin states.

Findings

Micro-particles can be rotated at 150,000 rpm using electric quadrupolar moments.

Successful control and reconstruction of NV center spin states during full rotation.

Extended rotational stability over long periods, enabling new quantum applications.

Abstract

Recent advancements with trapped nano- and micro-particles have enabled the exploration of motional states on unprecedented scales. Rotational degrees of freedom stand out due to their intrinsic non-linearity and their coupling with internal spin degrees of freedom, opening up possibilities for gyroscopy and magnetometry applications and the creation of macroscopic quantum superpositions. However, current techniques for fast and reliable rotation of particles with internal spins face challenges, such as optical absorption and heating issues. Here, to address this gap, we demonstrate electrically driven rotation of micro-particles levitating in Paul traps. We show that micro-particles can be set to rotate stably at 150,000 rpm by operating in a hitherto unexplored parametrically driven regime using the particle electric quadrupolar moment. Moreover, the spin states of nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamonds undergoing full rotation were successfully controlled, allowing accurate angular trajectory reconstruction and demonstrating high rotational stability over extended periods. These achievements mark progress toward interfacing full rotation with internal magnetic degrees of freedom in micron-scale objects. In particular, it extends significantly the type of particles that can be rotated, such as ferromagnets, which offers direct implications for the study of large gyromagnetic effects at the micro-scale.