Sommaire:

Colour centres in diamond, in particular the nitrogen-vacancy centre, have recently attracted significant attention as versatile tools for quantum information processing, magnetometry and biolabelling, most of these applications relying on the long-lived electronic spin of the nitrogen-vacancy centre. However, for quantum information processing, this centre suffers from mediocre optical properties which limit its use in the absence of photonic structures. In contrast, the silicon-vacancy centre displays remarkable optical properties but so far, its spin degree of freedom had remained elusive.

Using resonance fluorescence, we have shown that the silicon-vacancy centre possesses an optically accessible spin S=1/2. We have then probed the coherence of this spin through coherent population trapping, thus demonstrating the possibility to control the spin with light. Finally, we have achieved coherent control of the spin, thereby showing that the silicon-vacancy centre is a promising spin-photon interface in a quantum network.

Pour plus d'informations, merci de contacter Jacques V.