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Color centers in diamond are promising platforms for quantum technologies. Most color centers in diamond discovered thus far emit in the visible or near-infrared wavelength range, which are incompatible with long-distance fiber communication and unfavorable for imaging in biological tissues. Here, we report the experimental observation of a new color center that emits in the telecom O-band, which we observe in silicon-doped bulk single crystal diamonds and microdiamonds. Combining absorption and photoluminescence measurements, we identify a zero-phonon line at 1221 nm and phonon replicas separated by 42 meV. Using transient absorption spectroscopy, we measure an excited state lifetime of around 270 ps and observe a long-lived baseline that may arise from intersystem crossing to another spin manifold.

Indium nitride (InN) has been of significant interest for creating and studying two-dimensional electron gases (2DEG). Herein we demonstrate the formation of 2DEGs in ultrathin doped and undoped 2D InN nanosheets featuring high carrier mobilities at room temperature. The synthesis is carried out via a two-step liquid metal-based printing method followed by a microwave plasma-enhanced nitridation reaction. Ultrathin InN nanosheets with a thickness of ∼2 ± 0.2 nm were isolated over large areas with lateral dimensions exceeding centimeter scale. Room temperature Hall effect measurements reveal carrier mobilities of ∼216 and ∼148 cm

The nitrogen vacancy (NV) center in diamond is fascinating and has a long spin coherence time. It is applied to magnetic sensors with high sensitivity (∼fT). To achieve a high sensitivity, an aligned NV ensemble is required. This paper presents a new methodology for the fabrication of two-dimensional (2D) aligned NV ensembles by using nitrogen-terminated (111) surface. To realize this, pure diamond growth and high nitrogen coverage on (111) surface were performed. As a result, we have succeeded in producing 2D NV ensembles, with 1 × 109 cm−2. Coherence time T2 was 2.45 μs. Also, Using dynamical decoupling, the decoherence sources were revealed. The alignment ratio along [111] axis was archived 60%. Thermal annealing of the nitrogen termination was introduced to improve the alignment ratio. After that, the alignment rate was up to 73%. This report shows that the aligned 2D NV ensemble has possibility to be applied for multiple quantum devices.

Nitrogen is frequently included in chemical vapour deposition feed gases to accelerate diamond growth. While there is no consensus for an atomistic mechanism of this effect, existing studies have largely focused on the role of sub-surface nitrogen and nitrogen-based adsorbates. In this work, we demonstrate the catalytic effect of surface-embedded nitrogen in nucleating new layers of (100) diamond. To do so we develop a model of nitrogen overgrowth using density functional theory. Nucleation of new layers occurs through C insertion into a C--C surface dimer. However, we find that C insertion into a C--N dimer has substantially reduced energy requirements. In particular, the rate of the key dimer ring-opening and closing mechanism is increased 400-fold in the presence of nitrogen. Full incorporation of the substitutional nitrogen defect is then facilitated through charge transfer of an electron from the nitrogen lone pair to charge acceptors on the surface. This work provides a compelling mechanism for the role of surface-embedded nitrogen in enhancing (100) diamond growth through the nucleation of new layers. Furthermore, it demonstrates a pathway for substitutional nitrogen formation during chemical vapour deposition which can be extended to study the creation of technologically relevant nitrogen-based defects., main text: 19 pages, 9 figures supplementary: 10 pages, 10 figures

Controlling and manipulating individual quantum systems in solids underpins the growing interest in development of scalable quantum technologies1, 2. Recently, hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) has garnered significant attention in quantum photonic applications due to its ability to host optically stable quantum emitters3-7. However, the large band gap of hBN and the lack of efficient doping inhibits electrical triggering and limits opportunities to study electrical control of emitters. Here, we show an approach to electrically modulate quantum emitters in an hBN–graphene van der Waals heterostructure. We show that quantum emitters in hBN can be reversibly activated and modulated by applying a bias across the device. Notably, a significant number of quantum emitters are intrinsically dark, and become optically active at non-zero voltages. To explain the results, we provide a heuristic electrostatic model of this unique behaviour. Finally, employing these devices we demonstrate a nearly-coherent source with linewidths of ~ 160 MHz. Our results enhance the potential of hBN for tunable solid state quantum emitters for the growing field of quantum information science.

Technologies that capture the complex electrical dynamics occurring in biological systems, across fluid membranes and at solid-liquid interfaces drive fundamental understanding and innovation in diverse fields from neuroscience to energy storage. However, the capabilities of existing voltage imaging techniques utilizing micro-electrode arrays, scanning probes, or optical fluorescence methods are respectively limited by resolution, scan speed, and photostability. Here we develop an optoelectronic voltage imaging system which overcomes these limitations by using charge-sensitive fluorescent reporters embedded within a transparent semiconducting diamond device. Electrochemical tuning of the diamond surface termination enables photostable optical voltage imaging with a quantitative linear response at biologically relevant voltages and timescales. This technology represents a major step toward label-free, large-scale, and long-term voltage recording of physical and biological systems with sub-micron resolution.

We demonstrate quantum sensing of dc magnetic fields that exceeds the sensitivity of conventional $T_2^\ast$-limited dc magnetometry by more than an order of magnitude. We used nitrogen-vacancy centers in a diamond rotating at periods comparable to the spin coherence time, and characterize the dependence of magnetic sensitivity on measurement time and rotation speed. Our method up-converts only the dc field of interest and preserves the quantum coherence of the sensor. These results definitively improve the sensitivity of a quantum magnetometer to dc fields, an important and useful addition to the quantum sensing toolbox., 5pgs main text, 10 pgs supplementary

We demonstrate locally the coherent formation of silicon carbide (SiC) on diamond, a rare example of heteroepitaxy with a lattice mismatch that exceeds 20%. High-resolution transmission electron mi...

Surface micro- and nano-patterning techniques are often employed to enhance the optical interface to single photoluminescent emitters in diamond, but the utility of such surface structuring in applications requiring ensembles of emitters is still open to investigation. Here, we demonstrate scalable and fault-tolerant fabrication of closely packed arrays of fluorescent diamond nanopillars, each hosting its own dense, uniformly bright ensemble of near-surface nitrogen-vacancy centers. We explore the optimal sizes for these structures and realize enhanced spin and photoluminescence properties resulting in a 4.5 times increase in optically detected magnetic resonance sensitivity when compared to unpatterned surfaces. Utilizing the increased measurement sensitivity, we image the mechanical stress tensor in each diamond pillar across the arrays and show that the fabrication process has a negligible impact on in-built stress compared to the unpatterned surface. Our results represent a valuable pathway toward future multimodal and vector-resolved imaging studies, for instance in biological contexts.

Titanium-based implants are the leading material for orthopaedic surgery, due to their strength, versatility, fabrication via additive manufacturing and invoked biological response. However, the interface between the implant and the host tissue requires improvement to better integrate the implant material and mitigate foreign body response. The interface can be manipulated by changing the surface energy, chemistry, and topography of the Titanium-based implant. Recently, polycrystalline diamond (PCD) has emerged as an exciting coating material for 3D printed titanium scaffolds showing enhanced mammalian cell functions while inhibiting bacterial attachment in vitro. In this study, we performed in-depth characterisation of PCD coatings investigating the surface topography, thickness, surface energy, and compared its foreign body response in vivo with uncoated titanium scaffold. Coating PCD onto titanium scaffolds resulted in a similar microscale surface roughness (RMS(PCD-coated) = 24 μm; RMS(SLM-Ti) = 28 μm), increased nanoscale roughness (RMS(PCD-coated) = 35 nm; RMS(SLM-Ti) = 66 nm) and a considerable decrease in surface free energy (E(PCD-coated) = 4 mN m−1; E(SLM-Ti) = 16 mN m−1). These surface property changes were supported by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Raman spectroscopy as corresponding to observed surface chemistry changes induced by the coating. The underlying mechanism of how the diamond coatings chemical and physical properties changes the wettability of implants was examined. In vivo, the coated scaffolds induced similar level of fibrous encapsulation with uncoated scaffolds. This study thus provides further insight into the physicochemical characteristics of PCD coatings, adding evidence to the promising potential of PCD-coatings of medical implants.

The precise measurement of mechanical stress at the nanoscale is of fundamental and technological importance. In principle, all six independent variables of the stress tensor, which describe the direction and magnitude of compression/tension and shear stress in a solid, can be exploited to tune or enhance the properties of materials and devices. However, existing techniques to probe the local stress are generally incapable of measuring the entire stress tensor. Here, we make use of an ensemble of atomic-sized in situ strain sensors in diamond (nitrogen-vacancy defects) to achieve spatial mapping of the full stress tensor, with a submicrometer spatial resolution and a sensitivity of the order of 1 MPa (10 MPa) for the shear (axial) stress components. To illustrate the effectiveness and versatility of the technique, we apply it to a broad range of experimental situations, including mapping the stress induced by localized implantation damage, nanoindents, and scratches. In addition, we observe surprisingly large stress contributions from functional electronic devices fabricated on the diamond and also demonstrate sensitivity to deformations of materials in contact with the diamond. Our technique could enable in situ measurements of the mechanical response of diamond nanostructures under various stimuli, with potential applications in strain engineering for diamond-based quantum technologies and in nanomechanical sensing for on-chip mass spectroscopy.

The nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center in diamond is the most promising candidate for quantum sensing because of its beneficial properties. For quantum-sensing applications, a shallow NV center is critic...

Thin layers of near-surface nitrogen-vacancy (NV) defects in diamond substrates are the workhorse of NV-based wide-field magnetic microscopy, which has applications in physics, geology, and biology. Several methods exist to create such NV layers, which generally involve incorporating nitrogen atoms (N) and vacancies (V) into the diamond through growth and/or irradiation. While there have been detailed studies of individual methods, a direct side-by-side experimental comparison of the resulting magnetic sensitivities is still missing. Here we characterize, at room and cryogenic temperatures, $\ensuremath{\approx}100\text{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{nm}$-thick NV layers fabricated via three different methods: (1) low-energy carbon irradiation of N-rich high-pressure high-temperature (HPHT) diamond, (2) carbon irradiation of $\ensuremath{\delta}$-doped chemical vapor deposition (CVD) diamond, (3) low-energy ${\mathrm{N}}^{+}$ or ${\mathrm{CN}}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ implantation into N-free CVD diamond. Despite significant variability within each method, we find that the best HPHT samples yield similar magnetic sensitivities (within a factor 2 on average) to our $\ensuremath{\delta}$-doped samples, of $l2\phantom{\rule{4pt}{0ex}}\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{T}\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{\mathrm{Hz}}^{\ensuremath{-}1/2}$ for dc magnetic fields and $l100\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}\mathrm{nT}\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{\mathrm{Hz}}^{\ensuremath{-}1/2}$ for ac fields (for a $400\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}\mathrm{nm}$ $\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}400\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}\mathrm{nm}$ pixel), while the ${\mathrm{N}}^{+}$ and ${\mathrm{CN}}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ implanted samples exhibit an inferior sensitivity by a factor 2--5, at both room and low temperatures. We also examine the crystal lattice strain caused by the respective methods and discuss the implications this has for wide-field NV imaging. The pros and cons of each method, and potential future improvements, are discussed. This study highlights that low-energy irradiation of HPHT diamond, despite its relative simplicity and low cost, is a competitive method to create thin NV layers for wide-field magnetic imaging.

Hydrogenated detonation nanodiamonds are of great interest for emerging applications in areas from biology and medicine to lubrication. Here, we compare the two main hydrogenation techniques&mdash, annealing in hydrogen and plasma-assisted hydrogenation&mdash, for the creation of detonation nanodiamonds with a hydrogen terminated surface from the same starting material. Synchrotron-based soft X-ray spectroscopy, infrared absorption spectroscopy, and electron energy loss spectroscopy were employed to quantify diamond and non-diamond carbon contents and determine the surface chemistries of all samples. Dynamic light scattering was used to study the particles&rsquo, colloidal properties in water. For the first time, steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy analysis at temperatures from room temperature down to 10 K was performed to investigate the particles&rsquo, fluorescence properties. Our results show that both hydrogenation techniques produce hydrogenated detonation nanodiamonds with overall similar physico-chemical and fluorescence properties.

We operate a fiberbased cavity with an inserted diamond membrane containing ensembles of silicon vacancy centers (SiV$^-$) at cryogenic temperatures $ \geq4~$K. The setup, sample fabrication and spectroscopic characterization is described, together with a demonstration of the cavity influence by the Purcell effect. This paves the way towards solid state qubits coupled to optical interfaces as long-lived quantum memories., 10 pages, 6 figures

Additive manufacturing using selective laser melted titanium (SLM-Ti) is used to create bespoke items across many diverse fields such as medicine, defense, and aerospace. Despite great progress in orthopedic implant applications, such as for "just in time" implants, significant challenges remain with regards to material osseointegration and the susceptibility to bacterial colonization on the implant. Here, we show that polycrystalline diamond coatings on these titanium samples can enhance biological scaffold interaction improving medical implant applicability. The highly conformable coating exhibited excellent bonding to the substrate. Relative to uncoated SLM-Ti, the diamond coated samples showed enhanced mammalian cell growth, enriched apatite deposition, and reduced microbial S. aureus activity. These results open new opportunities for novel coatings on SLM-Ti devices in general and especially show promise for improved biomedical implants.

We demonstrate two-dimensional photonic crystal cavities operating at telecommunication wavelengths in a single-crystal diamond membrane. We use a high-optical-quality and thin (~ 300 nm) diamond membrane, supported by a polycrystalline diamond frame, to realize fully suspended two-dimensional photonic crystal cavities with a high theoretical quality factor of ~ $8\times10^6$ and a relatively small mode volume of ~2$({\lambda}/n)^3$. The cavities are fabricated in the membrane using electron-beam lithography and vertical dry etching. We observe cavity resonances over a wide wavelength range spanning the telecommunication O- and S-bands (1360 nm-1470 nm) with Q factors of up to ~1800. Our method offers a new direction for on-chip diamond nanophotonic applications in the telecommunication-wavelength range.

Dynamical decoupling (DD) is a powerful method for controlling arbitrary open quantum systems. In quantum spin control, DD generally involves a sequence of timed spin flips ($\ensuremath{\pi}$ rotations) arranged to either average out or selectively enhance coupling to the environment. Experimentally, errors in the spin flips are inevitably introduced, motivating efforts to optimize error-robust DD. Here we invert this paradigm: by introducing particular control ``errors'' in standard DD, namely, a small constant deviation from perfect $\ensuremath{\pi}$ rotations (pulse adjustments), we show we obtain protocols that retain the advantages of DD while introducing the capabilities of quantum state readout and polarization transfer. We exploit this nuclear quantum state selectivity on an ensemble of nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond to efficiently polarize the $^{13}\mathrm{C}$ quantum bath. The underlying physical mechanism is generic and paves the way to systematic engineering of pulse-adjusted protocols with nuclear state selectivity for quantum control applications.

The nitrogen vacancy (NV) center in diamond exhibits spin-dependent fluorescence and long spin coherence times under ambient conditions, enabling applications in quantum information processing and sensing. NV centers near the surface can have strong interactions with external materials and spins, enabling new forms of nanoscale spectroscopy. However, NV spin coherence degrades within 100 nanometers of the surface, suggesting that diamond surfaces are plagued with ubiquitous defects. Prior work on characterizing near-surface noise has primarily relied on using NV centers themselves as probes; while this has the advantage of exquisite sensitivity, it provides only indirect information about the origin of the noise. Here we demonstrate that surface spectroscopy methods and single spin measurements can be used as complementary diagnostics to understand sources of noise. We find that surface morphology is crucial for realizing reproducible chemical termination, and use these insights to achieve a highly ordered, oxygen-terminated surface with suppressed noise. We observe NV centers within 10 nm of the surface with coherence times extended by an order of magnitude.

The two-dimensional (2D) hole gas at the surface of transfer-doped diamond shows quantum-mechanical interference effects in magnetoresistance in the form of weak localization and weak antilocalization (WAL) at temperatures below about 5 K. Here we use the quenching of the WAL by an additional magnetic field applied parallel to the 2D plane to extract the magnitude of the in-plane $g$-factor of the holes and fluctuations in the well width as a function of carrier density. Carrier densities are varied between 1.71 and $4.35\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{13}\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}\mathrm{c}{\mathrm{m}}^{\ensuremath{-}2}$ by gating a Hall bar device with an ionic liquid. Over this range, calculated values of $|g|$ vary between 1.6 and 2.3 and the extracted well-width variation drops from 3 to 1.3 nm rms over the phase coherence length of 33 nm for a fixed geometrical surface roughness of about 1 nm as measured by atomic force microscopy. Possible mechanisms for the extracted variations in the presence of the ionic liquid are discussed.

Stability of carbon fiber in hydrogen plasma during chemical vapor deposition growth of diamond film was investigated for a range of carbon fiber samples with different physical properties. Morphological studies using scanning electron microscopy and focused ion beam showed that pre-growth seeding with nanodiamonds was necessary both to protect the carbon fiber from atomic hydrogen attack and to promote diamond growth. Microstructural studies using Raman spectroscopy indicated that carbon fibers with larger crystallite size, which correspond to high and ultra-high modulus fibers, were less susceptible to etching compared to carbon fibers with smaller crystallite size, corresponding to intermediate modulus fibers. A model was developed to predict the diamond film coverage, following pre-seeding of the carbon fibers with nanodiamonds. Compared to larger seeds, a dense seeding with smaller sized nanodiamonds resulted in faster coalescence, which provides significant benefits as the diamond layer protects the carbon fiber from hydrogen plasma attack. The results of this study will facilitate the integration of diamond and carbon fiber into a versatile hybrid material and, in particular, pave the way towards development of novel biocompatible diamond-coated carbon fiber micro-electrodes with long-term efficacy.

The electrochemical capacitance of nitrogen-doped ultrananocrystalline diamond (N-UNCD) can be dramatically increased by treating the surface with an RF-oxygen plasma. Such treated surfaces display excellent properties for use as electrodes in neural stimulation and recording. In the present work, we elucidate the origins of this phenomenon by investigating the effects of different methods of oxygen termination. We found that the increase in electrochemical capacitance is dependent on the details of the method used for oxygen termination. Whilst N-UNCD subjected to UV/ozone treatment, oxygen plasma treatment, and furnace annealing in oxygen gas all displayed increased surface capacitance, the highest capacitance was exhibited by the oxygen annealed sample, with which we achieved ~ 3 orders of magnitude increase in the electrochemical capacitance as compared to the as-grown sample. The maximum recorded capacitance was 3746 ± 132 µF cm−2, which is substantially greater than previously reported N-UNCD electrodes’ electrochemical capacitance (1070 µF cm−2, W. Tong. et al, 2016). Our findings point to the presence of sub-surface solid state capacitance which contributes significantly to the observed electrochemical capacitance of the oxygen terminated N-UNCD electrodes. When combined with the favourable biocompatibility and inertness of the N-UNCD, our approach may provide a route towards the development of advanced neural sensing and stimulating electrodes.

Diamond is highly desirable as a conformal thin-film coating for three-dimensional (3D) devices due to its extreme hardness, durability and biocompatibility, especially in the case of implantable medical devices and prosthetics. Recent advances in microwave plasma chemical vapour deposition (CVD) have enabled conformal coating of such 3D structures with nanodiamond films. However, these techniques have not been extended to micro-crystalline diamond, due to interactions between the 3D substrates and resonant microwave cavity. Here we demonstrate more uniform growth of CVD polycrystalline diamond (PCD) coatings on complex-shaped structures, with the use of in-cavity Faraday cages, to isolate the 3D sample from the microwave cavity. While this does disrupt the distribution of the microwave plasma, which surrounds the 3D structure, we show that growth of relatively uniform micro-crystalline and faceted PCD films is possible over the entirety of the exposed 3D sample surface. The resultant technique opens possibilities for the coating of complex 3D geometries with a wider range of diamond materials than has been possible to date.

Prototype electronic devices have been critical to the discovery and demonstration of the unique properties of new materials, including composites based on carbon nanotubes (CNT) and graphene. However, these devices are not typically constructed with durability or biocompatibility in mind, relying on conductive polymeric adhesives, mechanical clamps or crimps, or solders for electrical connections. In this paper, two key metallization techniques are presented that employ commercially-available brazing alloys to fabricate electronic devices based on diamond and carbonaceous wires. Investigation of the carbon—alloy interfacial interactions was utilized to guide device fabrication. The interplay of both chemical (“adhesive”) and mechanical (“cohesive”) forces at the interface of different forms of carbon was exploited to fabricate either freestanding or substrate-fixed carbonaceous electronic devices. Elemental analysis in conjunction with scanning electron microscopy of the carbon—alloy interface revealed the chemical nature of the Ag alloy bond and the mechanical nature of the Au alloy bond. Electrical characterization revealed the non-rectifying nature of the carbon—Au alloy interconnects. Finally, electronic devices were fabricated, including a Au circuit structure embedded in a polycrystalline diamond substrate.

Medical implants containing active electronics must have a leak-proof encapsulation to be certified as safe for human use. Implantable devices made from diamond demonstrated exceptionally long implantation lifetimes due to the outstanding biostability and biocompatibility of the material. However, since diamond does not melt and is therefore not weldable, forming joints between diamond components or embedding metallic wires and bonding pads within diamond is challenging. One method consists of using active braze alloys to bond diamond surfaces together. These active brazes comprise a precious metal alloy containing a carbide forming element that chemically bonds to the diamond as the braze metal melts. Silver-based active braze alloys are used successfully for brazing diamond in industrial applications, but silver is toxic to living tissue and, therefore unsuitable for use in implants. Gold active braze alloys (Au-ABA) are biocompatible but exhibit very poor wetting on the diamond. Here we demonstrate the use of molybdenum (Mo) and niobium (Nb) interlayers including single layers of Mo, Nb or Mo/Nb bilayer thin films as a solution to improve the wetting of Au-ABA on diamond surfaces. Theses interlayers provide for excellent penetration of the braze into the grooves and crevices in the diamond surfaces. We report on optimum recipes for the interlayer, both for the fabrication of weld lines and for the formation of smaller complex micro-structures and hermetic electrical feedthroughs.

Single crystal diamond (

Implantable devices which interact with neuronal systems and last for the lifetime of the recipient are an emerging field in medical research, diagnostics and therapeutics. These devices often contain sensitive micro-electronics ranging from passive radio-frequency identification tags to active sensors and stimulators. Therefore, such devices require robust and biocompatible packaging. There is a strong desire to reduce the size of such devices, enable wireless communication methods and protect these devices in the body for many decades. Diamond is a biopermanent material that provides the chemical inertness and mechanical stability to ensure long operational life of implanted devices and can also exhibit excellent optical and radiofrequency transparency. For some applications, the transparency of diamond is used to enable optical power and data communication with the encapsulated electronics. The final assembly of the device often requires the joining of diamond to diamond, and such joints are challenging to fabricate. Here we describe a new method of hermetically fusing diamond to diamond using a thin silicon interlayer as a braze material. The strong bond forms due to SiC formation at the interface of the materials. A 3.5 × 3.5 × 0.3 mm diamond box was formed from a thermal grade diamond base with a thin, transparent diamond lid. We show by helium leak detection and non-destructive optical methods, that the package is hermetically sealed to better than 2.2 × 10−9 cm3 atm/s of helium. The method is an industrially relevant route to forming long lived implantable diamond packages, in particular the incorporation of transparent diamond windows into the package to enable for optical power and data communication.

Implantable electrodes that can communicate with a small, selective group of neurons via both neural stimulation and recording are critical for the development of advanced neuroprosthetic devices. Microfiber electrodes with neuron-scale cross-sections have the potential to improve the spatial resolution for both stimulation and recording, while minimizing the chronic inflammation response after implantation. In this work, glass insulated microfiber electrodes are fabricated by coating carbon fibers with boron-doped carbon nanowalls. The coating significantly improves the electrochemical properties of carbon fibers, leading to a charge injection capacity of 7.82 ± 0.35 mC cm−2, while retaining good flexibility, stability and biocompatibility. When used for neural interfacing, the coated microelectrodes successfully elicit localized stimulation responses in explanted retina, and are also able to detect signals from single neurons, in vivo with a signal-to-noise ratio as high as 6.7 in an acute study. This is the first report of using carbon nanowall coated carbon fibers for neural interfacing.

Surface transfer doping of diamond using high electron affinity transition metal oxides (TMOs), such as MoO3, has emerged as a key enabling technology for the development of diamond-based surface two-dimensional (2D) electronics. However, the omission of a critical pre-annealing step in the device fabrication process to remove atmospheric adsorbates prior to TMO deposition, as seen in numerous studies, makes the role of TMOs ambiguous in light of air-induced surface conductivity, preventing a full understanding of the intrinsic surface transfer doping behavior of TMO-based surface acceptors. Here, using in-situ four-probe electrical measurements we explicitly show the insulating-to-conducting transition in diamond surface driven by MoO3 induced surface transfer doping. Variable-temperature Hall-effect measurements reveal weak temperature-dependence down to 250 mK, evidencing the 2D Fermi liquid nature of the resulting surface conducting channel on diamond. Using first-principles calculations, we confirm the interfacial charge exchange upon MoO3 adsorption leading to a degenerate hole conducting layer on diamond. This work provides significant insights into understanding the surface transfer doping of diamond induced by TMOs, and paves the way for the investigations of many interesting quantum transport properties in the resulting 2D hole conducting layer, such as phase-coherent magnetotransport, on diamond surface.

We report the preparation of a silicon terminated (111) diamond surface. Low energy electron diffraction and core level photoemission demonstrate that this surface is highly ordered and homogeneous and possesses a negative electron affinity. Our analysis suggests that the surface reconstruction begins with the formation of silicon trimers that coalesce into a rhombohedral 2D silicon layer reminiscent of rhombohedral silicene.

Implantable medical devices are now in regular use to treat or ameliorate medical conditions, including movement disorders, chronic pain, cardiac arrhythmias, and hearing or vision loss. Aside from offering alternatives to pharmaceuticals, one major advantage of device therapy is the potential to monitor treatment efficacy, disease progression, and perhaps begin to uncover elusive mechanisms of diseases pathology. In an ideal system, neural stimulation, neural recording, and electrochemical sensing would be conducted by the same electrode in the same anatomical region. Carbon fiber (CF) microelectrodes are the appropriate size to achieve this goal and have shown excellent performance, in vivo. Their electrochemical properties, however, are not suitable for neural stimulation and electrochemical sensing. Here, we present a method to deposit high surface area conducting diamond on CF microelectrodes. This unique hybrid microelectrode is capable of recording single-neuron action potentials, delivering effective electrical stimulation pulses, and exhibits excellent electrochemical dopamine detection. Such electrodes are needed for the next generation of miniaturized, closed-loop implants that can self-tune therapies by monitoring both electrophysiological and biochemical biomarkers.

Diamond, a wide band-gap semiconductor, can be engineered to exhibit superconductivity when doped heavily with boron. The phenomena has been demonstrated in samples grown by chemical vapor deposition where the boron concentration exceeds the critical concentration for the metal-to-insulator transition of nMIT4×1020/cm3. While the threshold carrier concentration for superconductivity is generally well established in the literature, it is unclear how well correlated higher critical temperatures are with increased boron concentration. Previous studies have generally compared several samples grown under different plasma conditions, or on substrates having different crystallographic orientations, in order to vary the incorporation of boron into the lattice. Here, we present a study of a single sample with unchanging boron concentration, and instead modify the charge-carrier concentration by introducing compensating defects via high-energy ion irradiation. Superconductivity is completely suppressed when the number of defects is sufficient to compensate the hole concentration to below threshold. Furthermore, we show it is possible to recover the superconductivity by annealing the sample in vacuum to remove the compensating defects.

Nanoscale quantum probes such as the nitrogen-vacancy centre in diamond have demonstrated remarkable sensing capabilities over the past decade as control over the fabrication and manipulation of these systems has evolved. However, as the size of these nanoscale quantum probes is reduced, the surface termination of the host material begins to play a prominent role as a source of magnetic and electric field noise. In this work, we show that borane-reduced nanodiamond surfaces can on average double the spin relaxation time of individual nitrogen-vacancy centres in nanodiamonds when compared to the thermally oxidised surfaces. Using a combination of infra-red and x-ray absorption spectroscopy techniques, we correlate the changes in quantum relaxation rates with the conversion of sp2 carbon to C-O and C-H bonds on the diamond surface. These findings implicate double-bonded carbon species as a dominant source of spin noise for near surface NV centres and show that through tailored engineering of the surface, we can improve the quantum properties and magnetic sensitivity of these nanoscale probes., Comment: 15 pages, 4 figures