Identification and Reversible Optical Switching of NV<sup>+</sup> Centers in Diamond
Abstract Positive nitrogen‐vacancy centers (NV + ) in diamond are predicted to exist in conjunction with neutral (NV 0 ) and negative (NV − ) centers. However, the existence of NV + has only been indirectly inferred through a shift of the Fermi level. Evidence of NV + coexisting with NV 0 and NV – in diamond has not yet been observed. In this paper, positron annihilation spectroscopy in combination with in situ light illumination is applied, in order to investigate the presence of NV + centers in nitrogen implanted and subsequently annealed diamond. Switching of NV + to NV 0 centers is observed with a threshold photon energy of 1.234(8) eV. In complete darkness, a decay of NV 0 centers with a decay time of 1.73(22) h can be detected. In conclusion, previously converted NV 0 centers are metastable and partially decay in darkness, leading to the reformation of NV + centers.
Authors
- G. Dollinger
- Marcel Dickmann (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-8971-7626)
- Ricardo Helm (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-2048-0144)
- Johannes Mitteneder (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-4374-7848)
- José Dörner (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4016-2875)
- Maik Butterling (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3674-0767)
- Andreas Wagner (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4015-236X)
- Werner Egger
- Vassily Vadimovitch Burwitz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9187-4867)
- Christoph Hugenschmidt (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0056-8953)
- T. Schwarz‐Selinger (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7461-2817)
- P. Sperr
- Lucian Mathes (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0698-8203)
- Maciej Oskar Liedke (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7933-7295)
Institutions
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (DE)
- Universität der Bundeswehr München (DE)
- Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Zentrum (DE)
- Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (DE)
- Technical University of Munich (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Advanced Functional Materials
- Published
- 2025-03-30
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202500817
- Citations
- 5
- Primary Topic
- Diamond and Carbon-based Materials Research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 2.59
Funders
- Bundesministerium für Bildung und Frauen