Atomic-scale imaging of a 27-nuclear-spin cluster using a quantum sensor.

Area of Science:

• Quantum Sensing
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging
• Atomic Scale Imaging

Background:

• Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) conventionally requires averaging over large ensembles.
• Progress in single-spin quantum sensors offers potential for imaging individual molecules.
• Imaging complex spin clusters with high precision remains a significant challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and demonstrate atomic-scale magnetic imaging of complex spin systems.
• To achieve high spectral resolution and sub-ångström spatial reconstruction for molecular structures.
• To enable magnetic imaging of individual molecules using quantum sensing.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a single nitrogen vacancy (NV) center as a quantum sensor.
• Employed a multidimensional spectroscopy method to isolate nuclear-nuclear spin interactions.
• Applied methods for efficient spatial reconstruction with sub-ångström precision.

Main Results:

• Successfully imaged a model system of 27 coupled 13C nuclear spins in diamond.
• Achieved high spectral resolution (<80 millihertz) and accuracy (<2 millihertz) for spin interactions.
• Demonstrated the extraction of 3D structure with sub-ångström resolution from spin interactions.

Conclusions:

• The study demonstrates a key capability towards magnetic imaging of individual molecules.
• High-resolution imaging of complex spin systems is achievable with quantum sensors.
• This technique provides insights into the composition and connectivity of spin clusters.