Abstract
Electron beam irradiation into type-Ib diamond is known as a good method for the creation of high concentration negatively-charged nitrogen-vacancy (NV−) centers by which highly sensitive quantum sensors can be fabricated. In order to understand the creation mechanism of NV− centers, we study the behavior of substitutional isolated nitrogen (P1 centers) and NV− centers in type-Ib diamond, with an initial P1 concentration of 40–80 ppm by electron beam irradiation up to 8.0 × 1018 electrons/cm2. P1 concentration and NV− concentration were measured using electron spin resonance and photoluminescence measurements. P1 center count decreases with increasing irradiation fluence up to 8.0 × 1018 electrons/cm2. The rate of decrease in P1 is slightly lower at irradiation fluence above 4.0 × 1018 electrons/cm2 especially for samples of low initial P1 concentration. Comparing concentration of P1 centers with that of NV− centers, it suggests that a part of P1 centers plays a role in the formation of other defects. The usefulness of electron beam irradiation to type-Ib diamonds was confirmed by the resultant conversion efficiency from P1 to NV− center around 12–19%.
Highlights
The negatively-charged nitrogen-vacancy (NV− ) center in diamond is a lattice defect consisting of one nitrogen atom adjacent to one atomic vacancy (Figure 1) [1,2]
By one electron supplied from another nitrogen atom at a lattice site (P1 center), the charge state of NV centers changes from neutral (NV0 ) to NV−
By electron beam irradiation and subsequent annealing for type-Ib diamonds, some amounts of P1 centers are consumed through NV− center creation
Summary
The negatively-charged nitrogen-vacancy (NV− ) center in diamond is a lattice defect consisting of one nitrogen atom adjacent to one atomic vacancy (Figure 1) [1,2]. The multifunctional property of NV− centers working at room temperature (RT) is very attractive for many research fields; especially in the field of biology and life sciences [4,5,6,7]. Quantum beam irradiation followed by subsequent thermal annealing is one of the effective procedures to create NV− center in diamond [8]. The irradiation introduces vacancies into diamond containing nitrogen atoms, and the annealing enables vacancies to diffuse. By one electron supplied from another nitrogen atom at a lattice site (P1 center), the charge state of NV centers changes from neutral (NV0 ) to NV−
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