TY  - JOUR
PB  - SciPost Foundation
DO  - 10.21468/SciPostPhys.20.2.037
TI  - Near-resonant nuclear spin detection with megahertz mechanical resonators
PY  - 2026/02/10
UR  - https://scipost.org/SciPostPhys.20.2.037
JF  - SciPost Physics
JA  - SciPost Phys.
VL  - 20
IS  - 2
SP  - 037
A1  - Visani, Diego A.
AU  - Catalini, Letizia
AU  - Degen, Christian L.
AU  - Eichler, Alexander
AU  - del Pino, Javier
AB  - Mechanical resonators operating in the megahertz range have become a versatile platform for fundamental and applied quantum research. Their exceptional properties, such as low mass and high quality factor, make them also appealing for force sensing experiments. In this work, we propose a method for detecting, and ultimately controlling, nuclear spins by coupling them to megahertz resonators via a magnetic field gradient. Dynamical backaction between the sensor and an ensemble of $N$ nuclear spins produces a shift in the sensor's resonance frequency. The mean frequency shift due to the Boltzmann polarization is challenging to measure in nanoscale sample volumes. Here, we show that the fluctuating polarization of the spin ensemble results in a measurable increase of the resonator's frequency variance. On the basis of analytical as well as numerical results, we predict that the variance measurement will allow single nuclear spin detection with existing resonator devices.
ER  -

@Article{10.21468/SciPostPhys.20.2.037,
	title={{Near-resonant nuclear spin detection with megahertz mechanical resonators}},
	author={Diego A. Visani and Letizia Catalini and Christian L. Degen and Alexander Eichler and Javier del Pino},
	journal={SciPost Phys.},
	volume={20},
	pages={037},
	year={2026},
	publisher={SciPost},
	doi={10.21468/SciPostPhys.20.2.037},
	url={https://scipost.org/10.21468/SciPostPhys.20.2.037},
}