μSR in diamond

Abstract

It has recently become possible to take advantage of the interesting properties of diamond, as the synthesis of diamond has reached a point that material with impurities in the low the part per billion range and residual strain in the order of ten nano-radians has been realized. Hyperfine interactions have played a key role in the study of diamond and the emergence of novel applications. This relates to the characterization of defects and the development of engineered few spin systems. A particular aspect of the defect studies is the elusive hydrogen defect. In μSR studies, muonium is considered a light isotope of hydrogen with very similar chemical properties, but with very interestingly different dynamical properties, due to its much lighter mass. It offers a unique opportunity to study the behaviour of hydrogen in diamond at very low concentrations. The studies have revealed details of the elementary muonium atom as well as a molecule involving muonium in the diamond lattice. The dynamics of the muonium, which include quantum diffusion and ionization have also been studied. This contribution reviews μSR in diamond in the context of diamond as a modern material hosting advanced applications.