Microwave Resonator Readout of an Ensemble Solid State Spin Sensor

Abstract

Microwave resonator readout of the cavity-spin interaction between a spin defect center ensemble and a microwave resonator yields fidelities that are orders of magnitude higher than is possible with optical readouts. In microwave resonator readout, microwave photons probe a microwave resonator coupled to a spin defect center ensemble subjected to a physical parameter to be measured. The physical parameter shifts the spin defect centers' resonances, which in turn change the dispersion and / or absorption of the microwave resonator. The microwave photons probe these dispersion and / or absorption changes, yielding a measurement with higher visibility, lower shot noise, better sensitivity, and higher signal-to-noise ratio than a comparable fluorescence measurement. In addition, microwave resonator readout enables coherent averaging of spin defect center ensembles and is compatible with spin systems other than nitrogen vacancies in diamond.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)[0001]This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 16 / 551,799, filed on Aug. 27, 2010, which in turn claims the priority benefit, under 35 U.S.C. 119(e), of U.S. Application No. 62 / 723,113, filed on Aug. 27, 2018. Each of these applications is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.GOVERNMENT SUPPORT[0002]This invention was made with Government support under Grant No. FA8702-15-D-0001 awarded by the U.S. Air Force. The Government has certain rights in the invention.BACKGROUND[0003]Solid-state spin sensors employ spin center defects, including color center defects, in a solid-state host to measure one or more physical parameters or quantities, such as magnetic field, electric field, temperature, pressure, or the presence of an atomic, molecular, or other hadronic species. The spin center defects are point-like defects inside the solid-state host, such as nitrogen vacancies (NVs) in diamond, that sense the physical ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

This patent is about a sensor system that uses microwave technology to measure the interaction between microwave radiation and spin defect centers in a solid-state device. The system includes a microwave resonator, a solid-state host with spin defect centers, a microwave radiation source, and a detector. By measuring the amplitude and phase of the microwave radiation, the system can provide information about the spin defect centers. The technical effect of this invention is to provide a more precise and effective means for measuring spin defects in solid-state devices, which can improve their performance and reliability.

Problems solved by technology

Unfortunately, reading out a solid-state spin sensor using fluorescent light described above has a fundamental drawback: determining the quantum states of the spin center defects using the fluorescent light can be highly inefficient.

Readout fidelity also affects measurement time.

This makes the low readout fidelities (F<<1) of fluorescence-based spin-center-defect measurements highly disadvantageous for measuring transient physical quantities with relatively high SNR.

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