Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: ABSTRACT The nitrogen‐vacancy (NV) center in diamond is emerging as a powerful tool for imaging magnetic and electric signals at the microscale and below. However, most imaging demonstrations thus far have relied on costly, millimeter‐sized bulk diamond substrates, which cannot be easily scaled or integrated with other materials. Here, we report a scalable method for fabricating NV‐containing dense and homogenous fluorescent nanodiamond (FND) layers through electrostatic self‐assembly and demonstrate the utility of the FND layers for magnetic imaging. We investigate the effect of FND concentration in suspension, substrate immersion time, and solvent pH on the FND density on the substrate. We identify optimized self‐assembly conditions that maximize the FND density while minimizing aggregation. Using FND layers on a quartz substrate, we demonstrate magnetic field and magnetic noise imaging at the microscale, based on NV optically detected magnetic resonance magnetometry and T 1 relaxometry, respectively. Our results provide a direction for the development of cost‐effective and scalable FND layers and surface coatings. This paves the way for on‐demand quantum sensing and imaging on a broad range of surfaces based on NV centers and other diamond quantum emitters.
Source: Advanced Materials Interfaces
Language: English
Subfield: Materials Chemistry
Field: Materials Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,100
Awards: Dopant engineering of diamond for quantum sensing technologies, Quantum sensing of magnetism in two dimensions, Near-infrared quantum emitters in diamond: a new frontier in photonics, Unlocking the potential of magnetic 2D materials with quantum microscopy, A nanodiamond voltage sensor: towards real-time, long-term neuronal sensing
OpenAlex ID: W7127943522