Super-Resolution Magnetic Field Microscopy [SRMFM] Using Multifunctional Diamond Nanosensors

In this program, we will develop and prototype a new Super-Resolution Magnetic Field Microscopy (SRMFM) system that employs nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond nanostructures to image magnetic fields with a sensitivity below 100nT/sqrt(Hz) and a spatial resolution better than 20 nm. The system consists of two primary components: (1) hardware and software for NV electron spin-based imaging and magnetometry, implementing our recently developed wide-field super-resolution imaging technique and advanced spin sensing protocols; and (2) two classes of diamond nanocrystal imaging solutions with increasing sensitivity, including nanosensors fabricated from ultra-high purity bulk diamond, with near-unity NV yield and chemically controlled surfaces for dry and liquid applications. Component (1) consists of a hardware and software kit that can be easily added to existing commercial microscopes by major manufacturers, upgrading them to an SRMFM. Component (2) represents the diamond nanosensor probe solution to be used in (1), or as a stand-alone product for labs already possessing a suitable microscope. The combination of the microscope kit and research-grade, high-quality imaging agents, will not only establish sub-optical magnetic field imaging and sensing technique, but will also make the customizable and advance diamond nanosensors available to the research community at large.