Characterization of low-nitrogen quantum diamond for pulsed magnetometry applications

Abstract

Ensembles of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond are versatile quantum sensors with broad applications in the physical and life sciences. The concentration of neutral substitutional nitrogen ([N$_\text{s}^0$]) strongly influences coherence times, sensitivity, and optimal sensing strategies. Diamonds with [N$_\text{s}^0$] $\sim\,1-10\,\text{ppm}$ are a focus of recent material engineering efforts, with higher concentrations being favorable for continuous-wave optically detected magnetic resonance (CW-ODMR) and lower concentrations expected to benefit pulsed magnetometry techniques through extended NV electronic spin coherence times and improved sensing duty cycles. In this work, we synthesize and characterize low-[N$_\text{s}^0$] ($\sim\,0.8\,\text{ppm}$), NV-enriched diamond material, engineered through low-strain chemical vapor deposition (CVD) growth on high-quality substrates, $^{12}$C isotopic purification, and controlled electron irradiation and annealing. Our results demonstrate good strain homogeneity in diamonds grown on CVD substrates and spin-bath-limited NV dephasing times. By measuring NV spin and charge properties across a wide range of optical NV excitation intensity, we provide direct comparisons of photon-shot-noise-limited magnetic sensitivity between the current low-[$\text{N}_\text{s}^0$] and previously studied higher-[$\text{N}_\text{s}^0$] ($\sim\,14\,\text{ppm}$) NV-diamond sensors. We show that low-[N$_\text{s}^0$] diamond can outperform higher-[N$_\text{s}^0$] diamond at moderate and low optical NV excitation intensity. Our results provide practical benchmarks and guidance for selecting NV-diamond sensors tailored to specific experimental constraints and sensing requirements.