Unraveling hidden magnetic carriers in geological archives with a single spin quantum sensor

Abstract

Ancient magnetic fields are recorded by nanometre to micron-sized magnetic inclusions in rocks, yet resolving the individual magnetic carriers responsible for preserving these records is beyond the capacity of conventional palaeomagnetic measurements. This limitation is particularly critical for single-crystal palaeointensity studies, where such magnetic inclusions can preserve valuable records of ancient magnetic fields, both on Earth and in extraterrestrial materials, including lunar rocks, Martian meteorites, and meteorites from other parent bodies. Here we use quantum scanning magnetometry based on a single nitrogen-vacancy centre in diamond to image magnetic inclusions within natural plagioclase crystals at nanometre-scale resolution. Our approach resolves individual nanoscale magnetic sources inaccessible to conventional quantum diamond microscopy and enables quantitative mapping of their stray field signatures. Measurements of crystals from four geological formations reveal nearly two orders of magnitude variation in magnetic inclusion density and uncover previously unresolved populations of magnetic carriers with non-single-domain-like signatures within individual crystals. We also identify preferentially localized inclusions that may influence remanence anisotropy. By revealing the nanoscale carriers of magnetic remanence, our approach opens a new route to determining which minerals faithfully preserve the history of Earth's magnetic field over geological timescales.

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BibTeX RIS

BibTeX

@misc{schrader2026unraveling,
  title = {{Unraveling hidden magnetic carriers in geological archives with a single spin quantum sensor}},
  author = {Carolin Angela Schrader and Paul Yves Jean Antonio and Léa Houzelle and Brendan Cych and Mathew Domeier and Frédéric Fernandez and Bertwin de Groot and Lennart V de Groot and Arnauld Heuret and Christophe Nevado and Fadl Raad and Justin Tonti-Filippini and Vincent Jacques and Aurore Finco},
  howpublished = {HAL},
  year = {2026},
  month = nov,
  url = {https://hal.science/hal-05852465v1},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}

RIS

TY  - UNPB
TI  - Unraveling hidden magnetic carriers in geological archives with a single spin quantum sensor
AU  - Carolin Angela Schrader
AU  - Paul Yves Jean Antonio
AU  - Léa Houzelle
AU  - Brendan Cych
AU  - Mathew Domeier
AU  - Frédéric Fernandez
AU  - Bertwin de Groot
AU  - Lennart V de Groot
AU  - Arnauld Heuret
AU  - Christophe Nevado
AU  - Fadl Raad
AU  - Justin Tonti-Filippini
AU  - Vincent Jacques
AU  - Aurore Finco
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/11/04
PB  - HAL
UR  - https://hal.science/hal-05852465v1
AB  - Ancient magnetic fields are recorded by nanometre to micron-sized magnetic inclusions in rocks, yet resolving the individual magnetic carriers responsible for preserving these records is beyond the capacity of conventional palaeomagnetic measurements. This limitation is particularly critical for single-crystal palaeointensity studies, where such magnetic inclusions can preserve valuable records of ancient magnetic fields, both on Earth and in extraterrestrial materials, including lunar rocks, Martian meteorites, and meteorites from other parent bodies. Here we use quantum scanning magnetometry based on a single nitrogen-vacancy centre in diamond to image magnetic inclusions within natural plagioclase crystals at nanometre-scale resolution. Our approach resolves individual nanoscale magnetic sources inaccessible to conventional quantum diamond microscopy and enables quantitative mapping of their stray field signatures. Measurements of crystals from four geological formations reveal nearly two orders of magnitude variation in magnetic inclusion density and uncover previously unresolved populations of magnetic carriers with non-single-domain-like signatures within individual crystals. We also identify preferentially localized inclusions that may influence remanence anisotropy. By revealing the nanoscale carriers of magnetic remanence, our approach opens a new route to determining which minerals faithfully preserve the history of Earth's magnetic field over geological timescales.
ER  -

Abstract

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