(July 16, 2015) Scientists
at the Swiss Nanoscience Institute at the University of Basel have used
resonators made from single-crystalline diamonds to develop a novel device in
which a quantum system is integrated into a mechanical oscillating system. For
the first time, the researchers were able to show that this mechanical system
can be used to coherently manipulate an electron spin embedded in the resonator
– without external antennas or complex microelectronic structures. The results
of this experimental study will be published in Nature Physics.
In previous publications, the research team led by Georg H.
Endress Professor Patrick Maletinsky described how resonators made from
single-crystalline diamonds with individually embedded electrons are highly
suited to addressing the spin of these electrons. These diamond resonators were
modified in multiple instances so that a carbon atom from the diamond lattice
was replaced with a nitrogen atom in their crystal lattices with a missing atom
directly adjacent. In these “nitrogen-vacancy centers,” individual electrons
are trapped. Their “spin” or intrinsic angular momentum is examined in this
research.
When the resonator now begins to oscillate, strain develops
in the diamond’s crystal structure. This, in turn, influences the spin of the
electrons, which can indicate two possible directions (“up” or “down”) when
measured. The direction of the spin can be detected with the aid of
fluorescence spectroscopy.