- Physical Review Journals
All JournalsPhysics Magazine

Physical Review Applied

Reuse & Permissions

It is not necessary to obtain permission to reuse this article or its components as it is available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI are maintained. Please note that some figures may have been included with permission from other third parties. It is your responsibility to obtain the proper permission from the rights holder directly for these figures.

Export citation

Export citation

Choose format for download:

Download Citation
  • Open Access

All-optical photoluminescence response of nitrogen-vacancy ensembles in diamond at low magnetic fields

Xiechen Zheng1,2,*,†, Jeyson Támara-Isaza2,3,*, Zechuan Yin1,2, Johannes Cremer2, John W. Blanchard2, Connor A. Hart2, Michael Crescimanno2,4, Paul V. Petruzzi5, Matthew J. Turner2 et al.

Ronald L. Walsworth1,2,6

  • *These authors contributed equally to this work.
  • †Contact author: xzheng15@umd.edu
PDF

Phys. Rev. Applied 24, 064049 – Published 18 December, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/ls1d-r771

Abstract

All-optical (AO) microwave-free magnetometry using nitrogen-vacancy (N-V) centers in diamond is attractive due to its broad applicability and reduced experimental complexity. In this work, we investigate room-temperature AO photoluminescence (PL) at low magnetic fields (<2 mT) using diamonds with N-V ensembles at parts-per-million (ppm) concentrations. The measured AO-PL contrast features as a function of the applied magnetic field magnitude and direction are correlated with near-degenerate N-V electronic spin and hyperfine transitions from different N-V orientations within the diamond host. Reasonable agreement is found between low-field AO-PL measurements and model-based simulations of the effects of resonant dipolar interactions between N-V centers. The maximum observed AO-PL contrast depends on both the N-V concentration and the laser-illumination intensity at 532 nm. These results imply different optimal conditions for low-field AO N-V sensing compared to conventional optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR) techniques, suggesting new research and application opportunities using AO measurements with lower system complexity, size, weight, and power.

View figure in article

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Article Text

References (42)

  1. J. M. Taylor, P. Cappellaro, L. Childress, L. Jiang, D. Budker, P. R. Hemmer, A. Yacoby, R. Walsworth, and M. D. Lukin, High-sensitivity diamond magnetometer with nanoscale resolution, Nat. Phys. 4, 810 (2008).
  2. J. F. Barry, M. J. Turner, J. M. Schloss, D. R. Glenn, Y. Song, M. D. Lukin, H. Park, and R. L. Walsworth, Optical magnetic detection of single-neuron action potentials using quantum defects in diamond, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 113, 14133 (2016).
  3. D. R. Glenn, D. B. Bucher, J. Lee, M. D. Lukin, H. Park, and R. L. Walsworth, High-resolution magnetic resonance spectroscopy using a solid-state spin sensor, Nature 555, 351 (2018).
  4. M. J. H. Ku, T. X. Zhou, Q. Li, Y. J. Shin, J. K. Shi, C. Burch, L. E. Anderson, A. T. Pierce, Y. Xie, A. Hamo, U. Vool, H. Zhang, F. Casola, T. Taniguchi, K. Watanabe, M. M. Fogler, P. Kim, A. Yacoby, and R. L. Walsworth, Imaging viscous flow of the Dirac fluid in graphene, Nature 583, 537 (2020).
  5. M. J. Turner, N. Langellier, R. Bainbridge, D. Walters, S. Meesala, T. M. Babinec, P. Kehayias, A. Yacoby, E. Hu, M. Lončar, R. L. Walsworth, and E. V. Levine, Magnetic field fingerprinting of integrated-circuit activity with a quantum diamond microscope, Phys. Rev. Appl. 14, 014097 (2020).
  6. J. Tang, Z. Yin, C. A. Hart, J. W. Blanchard, J. T. Oon, S. Bhalerao, J. M. Schloss, M. J. Turner, and R. L. Walsworth, Quantum diamond microscope for dynamic imaging of magnetic fields, AVS Quantum Sci. 5, 044403 (2023).
  7. Z. Yin, J. Tang, C. A. Hart, J. W. Blanchard, X. Xiang, S. Satyajit, S. Bhalerao, T. Tao, S. J. DeVience, and R. L. Walsworth, Quantum diamond microscope for narrowband magnetic imaging with high spatial and spectral resolution, Phys. Rev. Appl. 22, 054050 (2024).
  8. A. V. Vorst, A. Rosen, and Y. Kotsuka, RF/Microwave Interaction with Biological Tissues (John Wiley & Sons, Hoboken, NJ, 2006).
  9. Y. Schlussel, T. Lenz, D. Rohner, Y. Bar-Haim, L. Bougas, D. Groswasser, M. Kieschnick, E. Rozenberg, L. Thiel, A. Waxman, J. Meijer, P. Maletinsky, D. Budker, and R. Folman, Wide-field imaging of superconductor vortices with electron spins in diamond, Phys. Rev. Appl. 10, 034032 (2018).
  10. N. D. Lai, D. Zheng, F. Jelezko, F. Treussart, and J.-F. Roch, Influence of a static magnetic field on the photoluminescence of an ensemble of nitrogen-vacancy color centers in a diamond single-crystal, Appl. Phys. Lett. 95, 133101 (2009).
  11. L. Rondin, J.-P. Tetienne, P. Spinicelli, C. Dal Savio, K. Karrai, G. Dantelle, A. Thiaville, S. Rohart, J.-F. Roch, and V. Jacques, Nanoscale magnetic field mapping with a single spin scanning probe magnetometer, Appl. Phys. Lett. 100, 153118 (2012).
  12. J.-P. Tetienne, L. Rondin, P. Spinicelli, M. Chipaux, T. Debuisschert, J.-F. Roch, and V. Jacques, Magnetic-field-dependent photodynamics of single NV defects in diamond: An application to qualitative all-optical magnetic imaging, New J. Phys. 14, 103033 (2012).
  13. X. Zhang, G. Chatzidrosos, Y. Hu, H. Zheng, A. Wickenbrock, A. Jerschow, and D. Budker, Battery characterization via eddy-current imaging with nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond, Appl. Sci. 11, 3069 (2021).
  14. A. Jarmola, V. M. Acosta, K. Jensen, S. Chemerisov, and D. Budker, Temperature- and magnetic-field-dependent longitudinal spin relaxation in nitrogen-vacancy ensembles in diamond, Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 197601 (2012).
  15. A. Wickenbrock, H. Zheng, L. Bougas, N. Leefer, S. Afach, A. Jarmola, V. M. Acosta, and D. Budker, Microwave-free magnetometry with nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond, Appl. Phys. Lett. 109, 053505 (2016).
  16. D. A. Simpson, J.-P. Tetienne, J. M. McCoey, K. Ganesan, L. T. Hall, S. Petrou, R. E. Scholten, and L. C. L. Hollenberg, Magneto-optical imaging of thin magnetic films using spins in diamond, Sci. Rep. 6, 22797 (2016).
  17. S. V. Anishchik, V. G. Vins, A. P. Yelisseyev, N. N. Lukzen, N. L. Lavrik, and V. A. Bagryansky, Low-field feature in the magnetic spectra of NV-centers in diamond, New J. Phys. 17, 023040 (2015).
  18. D. S. Filimonenko, V. M. Yasinskii, A. P. Nizovtsev, S. Ya. Kilin, and F. Jelezko, Weak magnetic field effects on the photoluminescence of an ensemble of NV centers in diamond: Experiment and modelling, Semiconductors 54, 1730 (2020).
  19. C. Pellet-Mary, M. Perdriat, P. Huillery, and G. Hétet, Relaxation processes in dipole-coupled nitrogen-vacancy centers in zero field: Application in magnetometry, Phys. Rev. Appl. 20, 034050 (2023).
  20. O. Dhungel, T. Lenz, M. Omar, J. S. Rebeirro, M.-T. Luu, A. T. Younesi, R. Ulbricht, V. Ivády, A. Gali, A. Wickenbrock, and D. Budker, Near zero-field microwave-free magnetometry with ensembles of nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond, Phys. Rev. B 109, 224107 (2024).
  21. J. F. Barry, J. M. Schloss, E. Bauch, M. J. Turner, C. A. Hart, L. M. Pham, and R. L. Walsworth, Sensitivity optimization for NV-diamond magnetometry, Rev. Mod. Phys. 92, 015004 (2020).
  22. M. W. Doherty, N. B. Manson, P. Delaney, F. Jelezko, J. Wrachtrup, and L. C. L. Hollenberg, The nitrogen-vacancy colour centre in diamond, Phys. Rep. 528, 1 (2013).
  23. J. Choi, S. Choi, G. Kucsko, P. C. Maurer, B. J. Shields, H. Sumiya, S. Onoda, J. Isoya, E. Demler, F. Jelezko, N. Y. Yao, and M. D. Lukin, Depolarization dynamics in a strongly interacting solid-state spin ensemble, Phys. Rev. Lett. 118, 093601 (2017).
  24. G. Kucsko, S. Choi, J. Choi, P. C. Maurer, H. Zhou, R. Landig, H. Sumiya, S. Onoda, J. Isoya, F. Jelezko, E. Demler, N. Y. Yao, and M. D. Lukin, Critical thermalization of a disordered dipolar spin system in diamond, Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 023601 (2018).
  25. S. V. Anishchik and K. L. Ivanov, A method for simulating level anti-crossing spectra of diamond crystals containing NV− color centers, J. Magn. Reson. 305, 67 (2019).
  26. T. Mittiga, S. Hsieh, C. Zu, B. Kobrin, F. Machado, P. Bhattacharyya, N. Z. Rui, A. Jarmola, S. Choi, D. Budker, and N. Y. Yao, Imaging the local charge environment of nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond, Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 246402 (2018).
  27. O. Dhungel, M. Mrózek, T. Lenz, V. Ivády, A. Gali, A. Wickenbrock, D. Budker, W. Gawlik, and A. M. Wojciechowski, Near-zero-field microwave-free magnetometry with nitrogen-vacancy centers in nanodiamonds, Opt. Express 32, 21936 (2024).
  28. A. M. Edmonds, C. A. Hart, M. J. Turner, P.-O. Colard, J. M. Schloss, K. S. Olsson, R. Trubko, M. L. Markham, A. Rathmill, B. Horne-Smith, W. Lew, A. Manickam, S. Bruce, P. G. Kaup, J. C. Russo, M. J. DiMario, J. T. South, J. T. Hansen, D. J. Twitchen, and R. L. Walsworth, Characterisation of CVD diamond with high concentrations of nitrogen for magnetic-field sensing applications, Mater. Quantum Technol. 1, 025001 (2021).
  29. R. Giri, C. Dorigoni, S. Tambalo, F. Gorrini, and A. Bifone, Selective measurement of charge dynamics in an ensemble of nitrogen-vacancy centers in nanodiamond and bulk diamond, Phys. Rev. B 99, 155426 (2019).
  30. I. Cardoso Barbosa, J. Gutsche, and A. Widera, Impact of charge conversion on NV-center relaxometry, Phys. Rev. B 108, 075411 (2023).
  31. K.-M. C. Fu, G. Z. Iwata, A. Wickenbrock, and D. Budker, Sensitive magnetometry in challenging environments, AVS Quantum Sci. 2, 044702 (2020).
  32. M. Widmann, S.-Y. Lee, T. Rendler, N. T. Son, H. Fedder, S. Paik, L.-P. Yang, N. Zhao, S. Yang, I. Booker, A. Denisenko, M. Jamali, S. A. Momenzadeh, I. Gerhardt, T. Ohshima, A. Gali, E. Janzén, and J. Wrachtrup, Coherent control of single spins in silicon carbide at room temperature, Nat. Mater. 14, 164 (2015).
  33. D. Simin, V. A. Soltamov, A. V. Poshakinskiy, A. N. Anisimov, R. A. Babunts, D. O. Tolmachev, E. N. Mokhov, M. Trupke, S. A. Tarasenko, A. Sperlich, P. G. Baranov, V. Dyakonov, and G. V. Astakhov, All-optical dc nanotesla magnetometry using silicon vacancy fine structure in isotopically purified silicon carbide, Phys. Rev. X 6, 031014 (2016).
  34. A. Gottscholl, M. Kianinia, V. Soltamov, S. Orlinskii, G. Mamin, C. Bradac, C. Kasper, K. Krambrock, A. Sperlich, M. Toth, I. Aharonovich, and V. Dyakonov, Initialization and read-out of intrinsic spin defects in a van der Waals crystal at room temperature, Nat. Mater. 19, 540 (2020).
  35. A. Gottscholl, M. Diez, V. Soltamov, C. Kasper, A. Sperlich, M. Kianinia, C. Bradac, I. Aharonovich, and V. Dyakonov, Room temperature coherent control of spin defects in hexagonal boron nitride, Sci. Adv. 7, eabf3630 (2021).
  36. X. Zheng, Replication data for: All-optical photoluminescence spectra of nitrogen-vacancy ensembles in diamond at low magnetic fields, 2025, https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/6TFFPG
  37. S. V. Anishchik and K. L. Ivanov, Sensitive detection of level anticrossing spectra of nitrogen vacancy centers in diamond, Phys. Rev. B 96, 115142 (2017).
  38. E. V. Levine, M. J. Turner, P. Kehayias, C. A. Hart, N. Langellier, R. Trubko, D. R. Glenn, R. R. Fu, and R. L. Walsworth, Principles and techniques of the quantum diamond microscope, Nanophotonics 8, 1945 (2019).
  39. C. Pellet-Mary, Cross-relaxation in dense ensembles of NV centers and application to magnetometry, Ph.D. thesis, École Normale Supérieure - Université PSL, Paris (2022).
  40. K. Arai, C. Belthangady, H. Zhang, N. Bar-Gill, S. J. DeVience, P. Cappellaro, A. Yacoby, and R. L. Walsworth, Fourier magnetic imaging with nanoscale resolution and compressed sensing speed-up using electronic spins in diamond, Nat. Nanotechnol. 10, 859 (2015).
  41. M. P. Backlund, P. Kehayias, and R. L. Walsworth, Fourier optical processing enables new capabilities in diamond magnetic imaging, Phys. Rev. Appl. 8, 054003 (2017).
  42. L. Robledo, H. Bernien, T. van der Sar, and R. Hanson, Spin dynamics in the optical cycle of single nitrogen-vacancy centres in diamond, New J. Phys. 13, 025013 (2011).

Outline

Information

Phys. Rev. Applied 24, 064049– Published 18 December, 2025
  • Received 29 April 2025
  • Revised 9 September 2025
  • Accepted 18 November 2025
Crossmark - Check for updates button
Creative Commons Logo

Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.

Published by the American Physical Society

Sign In to Your Journals Account

Filter

Filter

Article Lookup

Enter a citation