QNV-2D · Shallow NV Engineering

Shallow NV
Diamond

Near-surface NV centers engineered within 5–100 nm of the diamond surface for strong coupling to external spins, nanoscale magnetic sensing and surface-sensitive NMR.

5–100 nm¹⁴N / ¹⁵N{100}/{110}/{111}Ra < 1 nmH / O termination

View Specifications →Discuss Your NV Depth Requirement

3D shallow NV diamond showing surface spins, magnetic coupling, a near-surface NV center and 5–100 nm engineered depth

Why Shallow Matters

Bring the NV sensor
closer to the signal.

For surface-sensitive experiments, NV depth directly affects coupling to spins and fields outside the diamond. The objective is not simply “as shallow as possible”, but the right depth with usable spin performance and a controlled surface.

Depth sets the sensing distance.

Near-surface NV centers can interact with magnetic moments and spin ensembles outside the diamond, making them suitable for nanoscale sensing and surface-sensitive spectroscopy.

shallower NV → stronger near-field coupling
surface quality + spin coherence still matter

Depth engineeringTarget 5–100 nm according to sensing distance and experimental geometry.

Low-background hostElectronic-grade diamond minimizes unwanted nitrogen and defect background.

Surface engineeringHydrogen or oxygen termination can be selected around the near-surface experiment.

Depth Engineering Window

5–100 nm is a platform,
not one fixed recipe.

Implantation species, energy, dose, crystal orientation, annealing and surface preparation are selected around the target NV architecture.

Near-surface architecture

5 nm10 nm30 nm70 nm100 nm

ULTRA-SHALLOW / SURFACE SENSING

DEPTH TAILORED TO EXPERIMENT

Engineering variables

Depth is only one variable.

The shallow-NV architecture is defined together with the host crystal and surface.

DEPTH5–100 nm

IMPLANTED ION¹⁴N⁺ / ¹⁵N⁺

ORIENTATION{100} / {110} / {111}

DOSEsingle → ensemble

SURFACEH / O termination

ROUGHNESSRa < 1 nm*

Typical Specifications

Configure the shallow-NV layer.

These values define the normal engineering window. Final implantation and processing parameters should be selected around the measurement requirement.

QNV-2DCustomizable

Host material

Electronic-grade single-crystal diamond

NV depth

5–100 nm

Typical depth targets

5 / 10 / 20 / 30 / 70 nm; custom

Implanted ion

¹⁴N⁺ / ¹⁵N⁺

Implantation energy

2–50 keV typical engineering range

Implantation dose

10⁹–10¹⁴ ions/cm², architecture dependent

Crystal orientation

{100} / {110} / {111}

Typical substrate sizes

2×2 / 4×4 / 5×5 mm; custom

Surface roughness

Ra < 1 nm*

Surface termination

Hydrogen / Oxygen; custom preparation

* Surface roughness specification depends on substrate type, orientation and processing route. Final values are confirmed per quotation.

Surface Engineering

The surface is part
of the quantum device.

When the NV center is only nanometers below the surface, surface chemistry can influence charge stability, noise and device integration. Nova can prepare H- or O-terminated surfaces according to project requirements.

H termination

Hydrogen-Terminated Surface

Available for experiments or device structures where hydrogen surface chemistry is required. Surface preparation is coordinated with the NV depth and downstream device process.

O termination

Oxygen-Terminated Surface

Available for near-surface sensing workflows requiring an oxygen-terminated interface, with polishing and cleaning coordinated to the final surface condition.

Applications

Built for surface-sensitive
quantum measurements.

Shallow NV centers are most useful when the signal source sits outside or immediately above the diamond surface.

Nanoscale Magnetic Sensing

Detect localized magnetic fields and magnetic textures with a near-surface spin sensor.

Nanoscale NMR / MRI

Surface-sensitive detection of nuclear spins in small sample volumes and molecular systems.

Scanning NV Probes

Shallow NV architectures for high-spatial-resolution scanning quantum sensing platforms.

Surface & 2D Materials

Study magnetic and spin phenomena in thin films, interfaces and two-dimensional materials.

From Experiment to Sample

Specify the sensing problem,
then engineer the diamond.

Nova supports the workflow from substrate selection through implantation, NV formation, surface preparation and characterization.

01Define targetSensing distance, sample geometry and expected signal.

02Select hostElectronic-grade substrate, size and orientation.

03Design implant¹⁴N/¹⁵N, energy, dose and spatial architecture.

04Form NV centersPost-implantation processing and annealing.

05Finish & verifyH/O surface preparation and requested spin/optical characterization.

Tell us the sensing depth you need.

Send the target depth, orientation, isotope, dose or application. We can translate it into a shallow-NV material specification.

Discuss Your Experiment →

Shallow NVDiamond

Bring the NV sensorcloser to the signal.