The recently discovered negatively charged tin-vacancy centre in diamond is a promising candidate for applications in quantum information processing (QIP). We here present a detailed spectroscopic study encompassing single photon emission and polarisation properties, the temperature dependence of emission spectra as well as a detailed analysis of the phonon sideband and Debye-Waller factor. Using photoluminescence excitation spectroscopy we probe an energetically higher lying excited state and prove fully lifetime limited linewidths of single emitters at cryogenic temperatures. For these emitters we also investigate the stability of the charge state under resonant excitation. These results provide a detailed insight into the spectroscopic properties of the SnV − centre and lay the foundation for further studies regarding its suitability in QIP.

An experimental study of the actinide nucleus 23sU was performed by Coulomb excitation with "*Pb projectiles. The E2-transition matrix elements in the ground state band were measured up to spin 28 by comparing experimental Coulomb excitation yields to semiclassical calculations and by analysing Doppler broadened line shapes measured in coincidence with a gamma-ray sum spectrometer. The E2-metrix elements agree within their errors with the rigid rotor predictions. Neither an increase of the collective transition strength at high spin due to centrifugal stretching as predicted by the Rotation Vibration Model nor a cutoff in collectively as postulated by the Interacting Boson Model is observed. The excitation energies in the ground state band show the presence of an aligned angular momentum of 5h at spin 30 which can be explained by a crossing of an aligned band at hw sz 250 keV. The octupole band shows a constant angular momentum alignment of 3h (above spin 7) and no indication of a bandcrossing.

We investigate bright fluorescence of nitrogen (NV)- and silicon-vacancy color centers in pyramidal, single crystal diamond tips, which are commercially available as atomic force microscope probes. We coherently manipulate NV electronic spin ensembles with T2 = 7.7(3) μs. Color center lifetimes in different tip heights indicate effective refractive index effects and quenching. Using numerical simulations, we verify enhanced photon rates from emitters close to the pyramid apex rendering them promising as scanning probe sensors.

The negatively-charged nitrogen-vacancy center (NV) in diamond forms a versatile system for quantum sensing applications. Combining the advantageous properties of this atomic-sized defect with scanning probe techniques such as atomic force microscopy (AFM) enables nanoscale imaging of e.g. magnetic fields. To form a scanning probe device, we place single NVs shallowly (i.e. < 20 nm) below the top facet of a diamond nanopillar, which is located on a thin diamond platform of typically below 1 μm thickness. This device can be attached to an AFM head, forming an excellent scanning probe tip. Furthermore, it simultaneously influences the collectible photoluminescence (PL) rate of the NV located inside. Especially sensing protocols using continuous optically-detected magnetic resonance benefit from an enhanced collectible PL rate, improving the achievable sensitivity. This work presents a comprehensive set of simulations to quantify the influence of the device geometry on the collectible PL rate for individual NVs. Besides geometric parameters (e.g. pillar length, diameter and platform thickness), we also focus on fabrication uncertainties such as the exact position of the NV or the taper geometry of the pillar introduced by imperfect etching. As a last step, we use these individual results to optimize our current device geometry, yielding a realistic gain in collectible PL rate by a factor of 13 compared to bulk diamond and 1.8 compared to our unoptimized devices.

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The nuclear level structure and electromagnetic properties of ~96pt were investigated with y-spectroscopic techniques using multiple Coulomb excitation by 2~ projectiles. Particle-% and particle-y-y coincidences were measured over a wide range of scattering angles. E2-transition moments and static quadrupole moments have been determined by a comparison of experimental scattering-angle dependent y yields with calculated yields in a largely model-independent procedure. The results are compared with different theoretical models: the Asymmetric-Rotor Model, the Generalized Collective Model, and the Interacting Boson Model. The best agreement is obtained with the Generalized Collective Model representing a triaxial nucleus which is soft in the y degree of freedom.

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Quantum information processing (QIP) with solid state spin qubits strongly depends on the efficient initialisation of the qubit’s desired charge state. While the negatively charged tin-vacancy (SnV−) centre in diamond has emerged as an excellent platform for realising QIP protocols due to long spin coherence times at liquid helium temperature and lifetime limited optical transitions, its usefulness is severely limited by termination of the fluorescence under resonant excitation. Here, we unveil the underlying charge cycle, potentially applicable to all group IV-vacancy (G4V) centres, and exploit it to demonstrate highly efficient and rapid initialisation of the desired negative charge state of single SnV centres while preserving long term stable optical resonances. In addition to investigating the optical coherence, we all-optically probe the coherence of the ground state spins by means of coherent population trapping and find a spin dephasing time of 5(1) μs. Furthermore, we demonstrate proof-of-principle single shot spin state readout without the necessity of a magnetic field aligned to the symmetry axis of the defect.