Rapid and high-sensitive NV-based microwave field imaging via digital lock-in amplification for on-chip microstrip diagnostics

• URL: http://arxiv.org/abs/2609.05886v1
• Date: Sat, 05 Sep 2026 05:17:29 GMT
• Title: Rapid and high-sensitive NV-based microwave field imaging via digital lock-in amplification for on-chip microstrip diagnostics
• Abstract summary: High-resolution, high-sensitivity microwave (MW) magnetic field imaging is indispensable for non-destructive integrated circuit (IC) testing, radio-frequency device characterization, and spintronic research.<n>Here, we overcome this barrier by introducing a wide-field imaging scheme based on an ensemble of diamond nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers.
• Score: 12.238289382095509
• License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Abstract: High-resolution, high-sensitivity microwave (MW) magnetic field imaging is indispensable for non-destructive integrated circuit (IC) testing, radio-frequency device characterization, and spintronic research. Yet, the practical utility of these techniques is severely constrained by the pervasive challenge of isolating weak magnetic signatures from intense optical and electronic noise, which fundamentally limits both acquisition speed and detection sensitivity. Here, we overcome this barrier by introducing a wide-field imaging scheme based on an ensemble of diamond nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers, synergistically combined with digital lock-in amplification (DLA). By exploiting digital demodulation, the DLA precisely extracts the MW-field response at a specific modulation frequency from background noise (e.g., laser intensity fluctuations), dramatically improving the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Consequently, our system attains a magnetic field sensitivity of 126 nT/$\sqrt(Hz)$. Critically, the unprecedented SNR permits a pixel dwell time of under one millisecond, allowing full-field images to be acquired within seconds-more than an order of magnitude faster than state-of-the-art NV-based wide-field techniques. This combination of speed, sensitivity, and micron-scale spatial resolution (1.6 $μ$m) paves the way for quasi-real-time, non-invasive diagnostics of dynamic MW devices and integrated circuits.

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