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Three-dimensional optical manipulation of a single electron spin

Nature Nanotechnology volume 8, pages 175–179 (2013)Cite this article

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Abstract

Nitrogen vacancy (NV) centres in diamond are promising elemental blocks for quantum optics1,2, spin-based quantum information processing3,4 and high-resolution sensing5,6,7,8,9,10,11. However, fully exploiting the capabilities of these NV centres requires suitable strategies to accurately manipulate them. Here, we use optical tweezers12 as a tool to achieve deterministic trapping and three-dimensional spatial manipulation of individual nanodiamonds hosting a single NV spin. Remarkably, we find that the NV axis is nearly fixed inside the trap and can be controlled in situ by adjusting the polarization of the trapping light. By combining this unique spatial and angular control with coherent manipulation of the NV spin and fluorescence lifetime measurements near an integrated photonic system, we demonstrate individual optically trapped NV centres as a novel route for both three-dimensional vectorial magnetometry and sensing of the local density of optical states.

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Figure 1: Three-dimensional optical trapping and manipulation of a single electron spin.
Figure 2: Tracking and trapping of a single nanocrystal diamond with a single NV centre.
Figure 3: Vectorial magnetometry and orientation control with an optically trapped single spin.
Figure 4: LDOS mapping across a TiO2 waveguide.

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Acknowledgements

This work was partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Sciences (grants FIS2010–14834 and CSD2007–046-NanoLight.es), the European Community's Seventh Framework Program under grant ERC-Plasmolight (no. 259196) and Fundació privada CELLEX. The authors thank T. Gaebel and A. Edmonds for fruitful discussions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. ICFO – Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques, Mediterranean Technology Park, Castelldefels (Barcelona), 08860, Spain

    Michael Geiselmann, Mathieu L. Juan, Jan Renger, Frank Koppens & Romain Quidant

  2. Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, 2109, New South Wales, Australia

    Jana M. Say & Louise J. Brown

  3. IQFR – CSIC, Serrano 119, Madrid, 28006, Spain

    F. Javier García de Abajo

  4. ICREA – Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats, Barcelona, Spain

    Romain Quidant

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  1. Michael Geiselmann
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Contributions

M.G., M.L.J. and R.Q. conceived the experiment. M.G. performed the experiments. J.M.S. and L.J.B. provided the treated nanodiamonds. J.R. fabricated the nanostructures, J.G.A. provided theoretical support and F.K. assisted in implementing the ESR control. All authors discussed the results and commented on the manuscript. M.G., J.G.A., F.K. and R.Q. wrote the paper.

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Correspondence to Romain Quidant.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Geiselmann, M., Juan, M., Renger, J. et al. Three-dimensional optical manipulation of a single electron spin. Nature Nanotech 8, 175–179 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2012.259

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