Periodic Reporting for period 1 - QUENCH (QUANTUM-ENHANCED BENCHTOP NMR SPECTROMETER)
Reporting period: 2024-01-01 to 2025-06-30
Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is the gold standard for molecular structure determination, underpinning breakthroughs in chemistry, biology, materials science, and medicine. Yet despite its enormous scientific impact, conventional NMR has barely changed in 80 years: it still relies on bulky, high-field magnets and induction coils, making it expensive and inaccessible for many laboratories and applications. Sensitivity remains the key bottleneck, limiting NMR’s reach to only large, concentrated samples. The Quench project addresses this challenge by pioneering a new class of quantum-enhanced NMR spectrometers based on diamond nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers. NV spins offer unprecedented magnetic sensitivity at the nanoscale, and when integrated into benchtop NMR platforms, they promise several orders-of-magnitude improvements in sensitivity. The project integrates four advances to realize this vision: Diamond materials (WP1): Engineer isotopically pure, doped, and oriented NV-rich diamond films with high spin coherence and density. Microwave and RF control (WP2): Develop efficient high-frequency resonators for both small- and large-volume NMR detection. Quantum control (WP3): Implement robust quantum protocols and machine learning strategies to couple NV ensembles with nuclear spins, suppress decoherence, and boost signal extraction. System integration (WP4): Build and validate a quantum-enhanced benchtop NV-NMR spectrometer, scaling detection from picoliter to microliter volumes at Tesla-scale fields.
By merging quantum sensing with mainstream NMR technology, the project will deliver the first generation of compact, high-sensitivity benchtop spectrometers. The impacts are expected to be wide-ranging: Scientific: Fundamental advances in diamond growth, quantum control, and high-frequency device physics will accelerate progress across quantum technologies and spin-based sensing.Technological: Demonstration of μL-scale, high-field NV-NMR will provide a platform for next-generation benchtop spectrometers with record-breaking sensitivity. Societal & industrial: The technology opens access to powerful molecular analysis in contexts where conventional NMR is impractical, enabling transformative applications in quality control, environmental monitoring, drug discovery, medical diagnostics, chemical process monitoring, and materials innovation. The project’s results thus directly address the long-standing sensitivity bottleneck of NMR and pave the way for broad adoption of quantum-enhanced molecular spectroscopy.
By merging quantum sensing with mainstream NMR technology, the project will deliver the first generation of compact, high-sensitivity benchtop spectrometers. The impacts are expected to be wide-ranging: Scientific: Fundamental advances in diamond growth, quantum control, and high-frequency device physics will accelerate progress across quantum technologies and spin-based sensing.Technological: Demonstration of μL-scale, high-field NV-NMR will provide a platform for next-generation benchtop spectrometers with record-breaking sensitivity. Societal & industrial: The technology opens access to powerful molecular analysis in contexts where conventional NMR is impractical, enabling transformative applications in quality control, environmental monitoring, drug discovery, medical diagnostics, chemical process monitoring, and materials innovation. The project’s results thus directly address the long-standing sensitivity bottleneck of NMR and pave the way for broad adoption of quantum-enhanced molecular spectroscopy.
During the project, extensive work was carried out on diamond growth and material optimization, leading to the fabrication of isotopically pure ^12C films with controlled nitrogen doping and preferential NV orientation in (110) substrates. These efforts yielded extended spin coherence times and demonstrated the feasibility of precise defect engineering, while initial phosphorus doping experiments confirmed incorporation and established a pathway to n-type conductivity. In parallel, advanced microwave and RF hardware was designed, fabricated, and tested, including resonators operating up to 30 GHz for both picoliter- and microliter-scale detection. These devices enabled fast spin manipulation and efficient integration with optical and microfluidic platforms.
On the control side, new quantum protocols were developed to couple NV ensembles to nuclear spins and suppress decoherence, extending effective coherence times by an order of magnitude and significantly enhancing sensitivity. Simulations calibrated to experiments confirmed the robustness of these sequences, and combined microwave–RF driving strategies further reduced noise from spin impurities. Integration efforts resulted in the assembly of a custom NV-spectrometer where high-frequency ODMR, fast π-pulses, and quantum sensing were shown at 1 Tesla.
The main scientific and technical outcomes are optimized diamond materials with improved coherence and alignment, validated high-frequency resonators for scalable sensing, novel control protocols that increase robustness and sensitivity. Together, these achievements establish the technical foundation for quantum-enhanced benchtop NMR with sensitivity well beyond that of conventional approaches.
On the control side, new quantum protocols were developed to couple NV ensembles to nuclear spins and suppress decoherence, extending effective coherence times by an order of magnitude and significantly enhancing sensitivity. Simulations calibrated to experiments confirmed the robustness of these sequences, and combined microwave–RF driving strategies further reduced noise from spin impurities. Integration efforts resulted in the assembly of a custom NV-spectrometer where high-frequency ODMR, fast π-pulses, and quantum sensing were shown at 1 Tesla.
The main scientific and technical outcomes are optimized diamond materials with improved coherence and alignment, validated high-frequency resonators for scalable sensing, novel control protocols that increase robustness and sensitivity. Together, these achievements establish the technical foundation for quantum-enhanced benchtop NMR with sensitivity well beyond that of conventional approaches.
The project has delivered important results in materials engineering, instrumentation, and quantum control that together advance the state of the art in NMR spectroscopy. To ensure further uptake and success, several key needs have been identified. Continued research and development are required to further optimize defect control and reduce microwave heating and phase noise in integrated systems. Large-scale demonstration in applied laboratory settings will be important to validate performance and usability for end-users.