A single nitrogen-vacancy defect coupled to a nanomechanical oscillator
by S. Seidelin
Nature Physics. doi:10.1038/nphys2070
Authors: O. Arcizet, V. Jacques, A. Siria, P. Poncharal, P. Vincent & S. Seidelin
Abstract: We position a single nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centre hosted in a diamond nanocrystal at the extremity of a SiC nanowire.
This novel hybrid system couples the degrees of freedom of two radically different systems: a nanomechanical oscillator and a
single quantum object. We probe the dynamics of the nano-resonator through time-resolved nanocrystal fluorescence and photon-correlation measurements, conveying the influence of a mechanical degree of freedom on a non-classical photon
emitter. Moreover, by immersing the system in a strong magnetic field gradient, we induce a magnetic coupling between
the nanomechanical oscillator and the NV electronic spin, providing nanomotion readout through a single electronic spin.
Spin-dependent forces inherent to this coupling scheme are essential in a variety of active cooling and entanglement protocols
used in atomic physics, and should now be within the reach of nanomechanical hybrid systems.