Effect of phonons on the optical properties of color centers in diamond

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2017
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Abstract
During the last decade color centers in large band gap materials have received great attention due to the large degree of control that is possible to achieve of their internal degrees of freedom. They are leading candidates for quantum information and quantum metrology applications. At the same time, they have allowed the scientific community to explore and understand fundamental aspects related to the interaction between a system and its environment. In particular, the interaction of an electronic spin (the system) and vibrational degrees of freedom (the environment) deserve special attention for the successful implementation of systems in optoelectronic devices. Here, in this thesis we present microscopic models to theoretically understand the effect of phonons on the electronic and optical properties of color centers in diamond. First, we consider a microscopic model to study the electron-phonon interaction between the localized electronic states of a single negatively charged silicon-vacancy center and lattice vibrations. Using the spin-boson model, the Kubo formula, and molecular dynamics simulations we numerically reproduce the observed isotopic shift of the phonon side band in good agreement with recent experiments. Second, we develop a microscopic model for the spin-lattice relaxation dynamics of the negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond in order to reproduce the temperature dependence of the longitudinal spin relaxation rate from temperatures ranging from 10 mK to 475 K. Next, we consider a microscopic model for the electron spin resonance (ESR) absorption spectrum of e ⊗ E ⊗ SU(2) Jahn-Teller systems when an oscillating magnetic field is applied. This system is studied in order to understand the phononic dynamical suppression of the electron spin resonance in color centers with spin-1/2. Finally, we introduce the strain Hamiltonian of the negatively charged silicon-vacancy center in diamond. This Hamiltonian has interesting properties foroptomechanical systems based on the strain-induced coupling between compression modes of a diamond cantilever and individual negatively charged silicon-vacancy centers.
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Tesis (Ph.D. in Physics)--Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, 2017
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