Detection and manipulation of surface electric field noise of hexagonal boron nitride

TL;DR

This study investigates surface electric field noise in hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) using shallow boron vacancy defects, revealing its impact on spin relaxation and demonstrating effective noise mitigation strategies with passivation materials.

Contribution

It provides the first systematic analysis of surface electric field noise in hBN and compares the effectiveness of passivation materials like glycerol and PMMA.

Findings

Surface electric field noise causes depth-dependent spin relaxation in hBN.

Temperature increases lead to higher relaxation rates, indicating thermal effects.

PMMA passivation more effectively reduces surface electric field noise.

Abstract

Hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) spin defects off er transformative potential for quantum sensing through atomic-scale proximity to target samples, yet their performance is fundamentally limited by rapid coherence loss. While magnetic noise mechanisms have been extensively studied, another critical infl uence from surface electric fi eld noise remains unexplored in hBN systems. Here,we address this challenge and systematically investigate surface electric fi eld noise in hBN using shallow boron vacancy defects. The double-quantum spin relaxation behavior in response to magnetic fi elds and defect depths is examined, revealing that the relaxation rate follows a distinctive depth-related power-law dependence of ODMR splitting frequency. The relaxation is also demonstrated to be independent of the defect concentrations. Furthermore, the temperature dependence of the relaxation rate is investigated, showing a noticeable rise as the temperature increases from 296 K to 453 K, thus highlighting the infl uence of thermal eff ects on spin relaxation. To further suppress surface electric fi eld noise, we explore the eff ectiveness of passivation materials, including glycerol and PMMA. Notably, PMMA is more effi cient in mitigating surface electric fi eld noise. These experiments enhance the understanding of surface electric fi eld noise in hBN and provide a foundation for developing noise mitigation strategies in future research.