arXiv subjects

Sebastian Westrich

Publications and source records attributed to Sebastian Westrich.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Towards Application of Nanodiamonds for in-situ Monitoring of Radicals in Liquid Phase Chemical Reactions

In many chemical reactions, short-lived radical intermediates play a crucial role, while detecting such short-lived species in-situ remains challenging. The optically readable electronic spin of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond is a nanoscale sensor for such radical species: its longitudinal spin relaxation time (T$_{1}$) reacts to magnetic fluctuations from the unpaired electrons of radical species in its local environment. In this setting, we demonstrate the successful in-situ detection of the nitroxide radical 2,2,6,6-Tetramethylpiperidinyloxyl (TEMPO) using NV center-based T$_1$ relaxometry after depositing nanodiamonds onto the inner wall of a glass cuvette. A significant concentration-dependent shortening of the relaxation time was observed, from 197\:\textmu s $\pm$ 21\:\textmu s without radical to 66\:\textmu s $\pm$ 30\:\textmu s at a concentration of 1\:M TEMPO. At the same time, the nanodiamonds remain firmly attached to the cuvette even after the solution under investigation has been exchanged. The detection is sensitive in the nanomolar (nM) range and the determined signal-to-noise ratio is between 1.6 and 3.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2026

FRET between NV centers in diamond and chlorophyll molecules: a novel resource for multimodal sensing and imaging in plant cells

This work demonstrates efficient Forster resonance energy transfer (FRET) between ensembles of shallow nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers located 7 nm and 9 nm below a single-crystal diamond surface and a naturally occurring fluorophore, namely a mixture of chlorophyll a and b molecules extracted from Arabidopsis thaliana. The broad fluorescence band of NV centers spectrally overlaps with the absorption of chlorophyll molecules, enabling FRET. As a result, depositing a chlorophyll layer on the diamond surface reduces the NV fluorescence lifetime from approximately 14 ns to below 4 ns, indicating efficient energy transfer. Laser-induced photobleaching of chlorophyll restores the unquenched NV lifetime. In contrast, NV centers located deeper within the diamond at depths of 40 nm and 72 nm remain unaffected, confirming that the observed quenching originates from a short-range FRET mechanism. The NV ensembles retain their optically detected magnetic resonance contrast while FRET is observed, demonstrating preservation of their spin properties. These proof-of-principle experiments establish the feasibility of combining FRET-based distance measurements with magnetic sensing using optically readable spins.

physics.bio-ph↗

arXiv2025

Medusa 84 SiH -- A novel high Selectivity Electron Beam Resist for Diamond Quantum Technologies

We investigate the novel electron beam resist Medusa 84 SiH by Allresist GmbH (Germany) for nanostructuring of single crystal diamond and its effects on the spin properties of nitrogen vacancy (NV) centers in nanopillars as prototypes for photonic structures. We find contrast curves comparable to those of resists previously used for this task (Hydrogensilsequioxane FOx). We present a minimum selectivity for diamond etching of 6$\pm$1. Using an adhesion-promoting silicon interlayer enables fabrication yields of up to 98\%. We measure $T_2$ times of up to $\sim$25 $\mu$s before and after processing, demonstrating that the manufactured structures are usable for diamond-based quantum sensing.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2025

Nitrogen-Vacancy Centers in Epitaxial Laterally Overgrown Diamond: Towards Up-scaling of Color Center-based Quantum Technologies

Providing high-quality, single-crystal diamond (SCD) with a large area is desirable for up-scaling quantum technology applications that rely on color centers in diamond. Growth methods aiming to increase the area of SCD are an active research area. Native color centers offer a sensitive probe for local crystal quality in such novel materials e.g., via their reaction to stress. In this work, we investigate individual native nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in SCD layers manufactured via laterally overgrowing hole arrays in a heteroepitaxially grown large-scale substrate. Heteroepitaxy has become a common tool for growing large SCDs; however, achieving the high crystal quality needed for quantum applications remains a challenge. In the overgrown layer, we identify NV centers with spin-decoherence times in the order of hundreds of microseconds, comparable to high-purity homoepitaxial SCD. We quantify the effective crystal strain in different regions of the overgrown layer, indicating a low stress overall and a stress reduction in the diamond layer above the holes.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗