14 research outputs found
Control and Local Measurement of the Spin Chemical Potential in a Magnetic Insulator
The spin chemical potential characterizes the tendency of spins to diffuse.
Probing the spin chemical potential could provide insight into materials such
as magnetic insulators and spin liquids and aid optimization of spintronic
devices. Here, we introduce single-spin magnetometry as a generic platform for
non-perturbative, nanoscale characterization of spin chemical potentials. We
use this platform to investigate magnons in a magnetic insulator, surprisingly
finding that the magnon chemical potential can be efficiently controlled by
driving the system's ferromagnetic resonance. We introduce a symmetry-based
two-fluid theory describing the underlying magnon processes, realize the first
experimental determination of the local thermomagnonic torque, and illustrate
the detection sensitivity using electrically controlled spin injection. Our
results open the way for nanoscale control and imaging of spin transport in
mesoscopic spin systems.Comment: 18 pages, 4 figure
Spin dynamics in the optical cycle of single nitrogen-vacancy centres in diamond
We investigate spin-dependent decay and intersystem crossing in the optical
cycle of single negatively-charged nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centres in diamond. We
use spin control and pulsed optical excitation to extract both the
spin-resolved lifetimes of the excited states and the degree of
optically-induced spin polarization. By optically exciting the centre with a
series of picosecond pulses, we determine the spin-flip probabilities per
optical cycle, as well as the spin-dependent probability for intersystem
crossing. This information, together with the indepedently measured decay rate
of singlet population provides a full description of spin dynamics in the
optical cycle of NV centres. The temperature dependence of the singlet
population decay rate provides information on the number of singlet states
involved in the optical cycle.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figure
Diamond-based quantum technologies
Optically accessible spins associated with defects in diamond provide a versatile platform for quantum science and technology. These spins combine multiple key characteristics, including long quantum coherence times, operation up to room temperature, and the capability to create long-range entanglement links through photons. These unique properties have propelled spins in diamond to the forefront of quantum sensing, quantum computation and simulation, and quantum networks