Our latest study presents a room-temperature, non-thermal method for creating negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy (NV⁻) centers in diamond, essential for scalable quantum sensing. By illuminating nitrogen-implanted regions with a 405 nm continuous-wave laser, NV⁻ centers are activated without high-temperature annealing. The technique enables localized and in-situ generation of single and ensemble NV⁻ centers with T₂ coherence times up to 331 μs, matching conventional NV- centers created by thermal diamond treatment at low implantation doses. Photoactivation efficiency depends on implantation dose, laser power, and wavelength, with enhanced results using 375 nm light. The approach shows potential for rapid, targeted NV⁻ creation in prefabricated quantum devices.
You can find the full article in Advanced Functional Materials:
J. Fuhrmann, C. Findler, M. Olney-Fraser, L. Kazak, F. Jelezko,
Photoactivation of NV Centers in Diamond via Continuous Wave Laser Illumination of Shallow As-Implanted Nitrogen.
Adv. Funct. Mater. 2025, 2501661.
https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202501661