Sensor for measurements using Johnson noise in materials

US10197497B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• President and Fellows of Harvard College · US

Inventors

• Shimon Jacob Kolkowitz · Cambridge, US
• Arthur Safira · Los Altos, US
• Alexander A. HIGH · Brookline, US
• Robert C. Devlin · Concord, US
• Soonwon Choi · Corona, US
• Quirin UNTERREITHMEIER · Cambridge, US
• David S. Patterson · Somerville, US
• Alexander S. Zibrov · Cambridge, US
• Vladimir E. Manucharyan · College Park, US
• Mikhail D. Lukin · Cambridge, US
• Hongkun Park · Lexington, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Jan 29, 2016
• Grant date: Feb 5, 2019
• Expiry date: Jan 29, 2036

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G01R33/1284
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A method of making measurements includes providing a sensor with at least one solid state electronic spin; irradiating the sensor with radiation from an electromagnetic radiation source that manipulates the solid state electronic spins to produce spin-dependent fluorescence, wherein the spin-dependent fluorescence decays as a function of relaxation time; providing a target material in the proximity of the sensor, wherein, thermally induced currents (Johnson noise) present in the target material alters the fluorescence decay of the solid state electronic spins as a function of relaxation time; and determining a difference in the solid state spins spin-dependent fluorescence decay in the presence and absence of the target material and correlating the difference with a property of the sensor and/or target material.