Optimizing off-axis fields for two-axis magnetometry with point defects

Abstract

Vector magnetometry is an essential tool for characterizing the distribution of currents and magnetization in a broad range of systems. Point defect sensors, like the nitrogen vacancy center in diamond, have demonstrated impressive sensitivity and spatial resolution for detecting these fields. Measuring the vector field at a single point in space using single defects, however, remains an outstanding challenge. We demonstrate that careful optimization of the static bias field can enable simultaneous measurement of multiple magnetic field components with enhanced sensitivity by leveraging the nonlinear Zeeman shift from transverse magnetic fields, realizing an improvement in transverse sensitivity from >200 μT/Hz (no bias field) to 30 μT/Hz. This work quantifies the trade-off between the increased frequency shift from second-order Zeeman effects with decreasing contrast as off-axis field components increase, demonstrating the measurement of multiple components of the magnetic field from an exemplar antiferromagnet with a complex magnetic texture.