Single Defect Center Scanning Near-Field Optical Microscopy on Graphene

Tisler, Julia; Oeckinghaus, Thomas; Stöhr, Rainer; Kolesov, Roman; Reuter, Rolf; Reinhard, Friedemann; Wrachtrup, Jörg

doi:10.1021/nl401129m

Cited by 90 publications

(119 citation statements)

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“…To this end, we can take advantage of the excellent optical and electronic properties of graphene 9 , which include good photodetection capabilities 8,[10][11][12][13][14][15] , efficient energy absorption 3 and strong light-matter interactions at the nanoscale 16,17 . In particular, it has been reported recently that, because of graphene's specific properties, the near-field interaction between light emitters and graphene is greatly enhanced as compared to that of conventional metals [2][3][4][5][6] .…”

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confidence: 99%

“…To understand the longer decay times for the sample with nanocrystals, we need to discuss the dynamics of the NRET. Recently, it has been established, both theoretically and experimentally [2][3][4]6,17 , that the near-field interaction between optical emitters and graphene leads to a dramatic reduction of the lifetime of the emitters depending on the distance that separates the emitter and the graphene sheet. Specifically, the lifetime τ g of the emitter in the presence of graphene decreases as 3,4,17 :…”

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Ultrafast electronic readout of diamond nitrogen–vacancy centres coupled to graphene

et al. 2014

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Non-radiative transfer processes are often regarded as loss channels for an optical emitter 1 because they are inherently difficult to access experimentally. Recently, it has been shown that emitters, such as fluorophores and nitrogen-vacancy centres in diamond, can exhibit a strong non-radiative energy transfer to graphene [2][3][4][5][6] . So far, the energy of the transferred electronic excitations has been considered to be lost within the electron bath of the graphene. Here we demonstrate that the transferred excitations can be read out by detecting corresponding currents with a picosecond time resolution 7,8 . We detect electronically the spin of nitrogen-vacancy centres in diamond and control the non-radiative transfer to graphene by electron spin resonance. Our results open the avenue for incorporating nitrogen-vacancy centres into ultrafast electronic circuits and for harvesting non-radiative transfer processes electronically.With the advancement of nanoscale photonics research it has become increasingly desirable to combine optical systems with electric circuits to create optoelectronic devices that can be miniaturized and integrated into chips. To this end, we can take advantage of the excellent optical and electronic properties of graphene 9 , which include good photodetection capabilities 8,10-15 , efficient energy absorption 3 and strong light-matter interactions at the nanoscale 16,17 . In particular, it has been reported recently that, because of graphene's specific properties, the near-field interaction between light emitters and graphene is greatly enhanced as compared to that of conventional metals 2-6 . This interaction manifests itself, for example, in a 100-fold enhancement of the excited-state decay rate of emitters placed 5 nm away from graphene as compared to the spontaneous emission of the emitter. The physical mechanism behind the interaction is the creation of an electron-hole pair in graphene through non-radiative energy transfer (NRET) from the emitter dipole 18 . The NRET process to graphene has been demonstrated to have an efficiency of nearly 100% when the emitter is less than 10 nm away from the graphene sheet 3 , which makes graphene an ideal material to detect electronically the optical properties of nearby emitters 6 . NRET has been studied extensively for fundamental as well as for biosensing applications. However, a fast energy transfer has not yet been observed because of quenching of the optical signal for short graphene-emitter distances. In contrast, an electronic readout of the NRET enables studies on fast energy processes. Moreover, if the transferred energy can be collected, as we show in this work, new ways for energy harvesting and biosensing can be implemented.We take advantage of the highly efficient NRET process to read out electronically, for the first time, the optical excitation of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centres in diamond nanocrystals. To this end, we used graphene for the extraction of the excited-state energy of NV centres and converted it into a measurable ...

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Ultrafast electronic readout of diamond nitrogen–vacancy centres coupled to graphene

et al. 2014

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“…During the last decade there has been a continued effort towards the realization of nanoscale fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) with a single quantum system [10][11][12][13][14][15][16]. One system particularly well suited for this application is the nitrogen vacancy center (NV center) in diamond.…”

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Nanoscale Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging of an Optical Antenna with a Single Diamond NV Center

et al. 2013

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Abstract:Solid-state quantum emitters, such as artificially engineered quantum dots or naturally occurring defects in solids, are being investigated for applications ranging from quantum information science and optoelectronics to biomedical imaging. Recently, these same systems have also been studied from the perspective of nanoscale metrology. In this letter we study the near-field optical properties of a diamond nanocrystal hosting a single nitrogen vacancy center. We find that the nitrogen vacancy center is a sensitive probe of the surrounding electromagnetic mode structure. We exploit this sensitivity to demonstrate nanoscale fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) with a single nitrogen vacancy center by imaging the local density of states of an optical antenna.Controlled interaction of light and matter at the nanoscale requires a detailed understanding of the local electromagnetic mode distribution. It has been recognized for some time that, in contrast to the homogeneity exhibited by the vacuum electromagnetic modes in free space, surfaces and nanostructured environments can sculpt the local electromagnetic mode density or local density of optical states (LDOS). A manifestation of this modification, as first pointed out by Purcell [1], is that the excited state lifetime of a quantum object is not an immutable property, but depends sensitively on the system's . Important for the present work is that the NV center exhibits stable photoluminescence at room temperature (unlike most quantum dots that suffer from blinking) and the center's optical properties are preserved when the diamond host takes the form of a nanocrystal. In the following we exploit the previous features to demonstrate, for the first time, the suitability of the NV center for nanoscale FLIM by imaging a nanoscale optical antenna [28].The top panel of Fig. 1a presents an illustration of the FLIM concept. In the first modality a single quantum system (the "probe") is affixed to the vertex of a nanoscale tip and a sample to be interrogated (the "object") is scanned in close proximity to the emitter. The object perturbs the local electromagnetic environment of the probe and modifies its excited state dynamics that can be recorded as a function of the object's x-y coordinates to build an image. A second approach, followed in the present work, is to fix the probe in space, see bottom panel of Fig. 1a, and scan the object through the focus. Again, by monitoring the probe lifetime an image can be recorded. In our experiments a single NV center in a diamond nanocrystal is our probe of the nanoscale LDOS created by the object.

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“…Consequently, coupling to nanophotonic structures is mandatory to enhance the photon rates from individual color center sensors in single-crystal diamond. Alternatively, attaching nanodiamonds (NDs) containing NV centers to a scanning probe tip provides a scannable NV platform (e.g., [26,85]). However, NDs show non-ideal material properties, typically due to excess nitrogen or crystal strain resulting from milling of the material [86].…”

Section: Nanostructures For Photonics and Scanning Probe Operationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nanoscale Sensing Using Point Defects in Single-Crystal Diamond: Recent Progress on Nitrogen Vacancy Center-Based Sensors

et al. 2017

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Individual, luminescent point defects in solids, so-called color centers, are atomic-sized quantum systems enabling sensing and imaging with nanoscale spatial resolution. In this overview, we introduce nanoscale sensing based on individual nitrogen vacancy (NV) centers in diamond. We discuss two central challenges of the field: first, the creation of highly-coherent, shallow NV centers less than 10 nm below the surface of a single-crystal diamond; second, the fabrication of tip-like photonic nanostructures that enable efficient fluorescence collection and can be used for scanning probe imaging based on color centers with nanoscale resolution.

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Single Defect Center Scanning Near-Field Optical Microscopy on Graphene

Cited by 90 publications

References 37 publications

Ultrafast electronic readout of diamond nitrogen–vacancy centres coupled to graphene

Ultrafast electronic readout of diamond nitrogen–vacancy centres coupled to graphene

Nanoscale Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging of an Optical Antenna with a Single Diamond NV Center

Nanoscale Sensing Using Point Defects in Single-Crystal Diamond: Recent Progress on Nitrogen Vacancy Center-Based Sensors

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