New Research Achieves 100-Fold Increase in Precision in Measuring Magnetic Fields

Researchers have created an intelligent sensor that can measure magnetic fields based on a single electron trapped in a diamond and is 100-times more precise than existing sensors.

This dramatic breakthrough in measuring magnetic fields could lead to the development of sensors that can precisely detect weak magnetic fields, and discriminate small spatial features. Such sensors could be used in many novel applications in medicine and other fields.

The research was published in the November 2015, issue of the journal Nature Nanotechnology by researchers from Delft University (Delft, The Netherlands), the Foundation for Fundamental Research on Matter (FOM; Amsterdam, The Netherlands), and Macquarie University (Sydney, NSW, Australia).

The spin of a single electron is the ultimate limit in spatial resolution. The electron behaves like a miniscule quantum MRI-scanner and can even be brought close a single biological molecule to detect its magnetic fields. The sensor uses the spin of an electron trapped in a defect of a diamond, a nitrogen-vacancy center. The trapped electron can be precisely controlled using laser and microwave pulses, and measurements are performed in real time using ultra-fast electronics. The researchers cooled the diamond chip to cryogenic temperatures, but expect that quantum sensors operating at room temperature, enabling real-world applications, are also feasible.

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Delft University
FOM
Macquarie University