A single-molecule spin-photon interface.
7 affiliations
- 1Institute for Quantum Optics (IQO), Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
- 2NVision Quantum Technologies, Ulm, Germany
- 3Racah Institute of Physics, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
- 4Center for Integrated Quantum Science and Technology (IQST), Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
- 5Institute of Theoretical Physics, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
- 6NVision Quantum Technologies, Ulm, Germany. [email protected]
- 7NVision Quantum Technologies, Ulm, Germany. [email protected]
Abstract
Optical interfaces that connect long-lived spin qubits to photons are a central requirement for quantum networking and distributed quantum information processing. At present, solid-state atomic defects are leading candidates because of their inherent spin and optical coherence1,2. Building on these advancements, synthetically tailored molecular systems represent a fundamental change in the field, using precise atomic control and consistent bottom-up assembly3,4. However, a molecular platform that concurrently satisfies the demands of a robust spin-photon interface-namely, the combination of bright fluorescence, high spectral stability and long ground-state spin lifetimes-has yet to be realized at the single-molecule level. Here we show that a triplet ground-state carbene molecule, embedded within a structurally matched host crystal, functions as a robust spin-photon interface with single-molecule addressability. The system exhibits narrow ZPLs, spectral stability over more than an hour, spin-selective optical transitions and single-molecule optically detected magnetic resonance. Coherent control yields millisecond-scale dynamical-decoupling coherence and tens-of-milliseconds spin relaxation at a temperature of 4.5 K. These results establish molecular qubits as a viable platform for single-emitter quantum optics5,6 while preserving the advantages of bottom-up chemical design⁷ and processable materials⁸⁻¹⁰.
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BibTeX
@article{roggors2026singlemolecule,
title = {{A single-molecule spin-photon interface.}},
author = {Simon Roggors and Thomas Unden and Anna Aubele and Paul Mentzel and Gregor Bayer and Alon Salhov and Jochen Scharpf and Martin Bodo Plenio and Alex Retzker and Fedor Jelezko and Tim R. Eichhorn and Tobias A. Schaub and Matthias Pfender and Philipp Neumann and Ilai Schwartz},
journal = {Nature},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1038/s41586-026-11147-6},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42951951},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - A single-molecule spin-photon interface.
AU - Simon Roggors
AU - Thomas Unden
AU - Anna Aubele
AU - Paul Mentzel
AU - Gregor Bayer
AU - Alon Salhov
AU - Jochen Scharpf
AU - Martin Bodo Plenio
AU - Alex Retzker
AU - Fedor Jelezko
AU - Tim R. Eichhorn
AU - Tobias A. Schaub
AU - Matthias Pfender
AU - Philipp Neumann
AU - Ilai Schwartz
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/28
JO - Nature
DO - 10.1038/s41586-026-11147-6
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42951951
AB - Optical interfaces that connect long-lived spin qubits to photons are a central requirement for quantum networking and distributed quantum information processing. At present, solid-state atomic defects are leading candidates because of their inherent spin and optical coherence1,2. Building on these advancements, synthetically tailored molecular systems represent a fundamental change in the field, using precise atomic control and consistent bottom-up assembly3,4. However, a molecular platform that concurrently satisfies the demands of a robust spin-photon interface-namely, the combination of bright fluorescence, high spectral stability and long ground-state spin lifetimes-has yet to be realized at the single-molecule level. Here we show that a triplet ground-state carbene molecule, embedded within a structurally matched host crystal, functions as a robust spin-photon interface with single-molecule addressability. The system exhibits narrow ZPLs, spectral stability over more than an hour, spin-selective optical transitions and single-molecule optically detected magnetic resonance. Coherent control yields millisecond-scale dynamical-decoupling coherence and tens-of-milliseconds spin relaxation at a temperature of 4.5 K. These results establish molecular qubits as a viable platform for single-emitter quantum optics5,6 while preserving the advantages of bottom-up chemical design⁷ and processable materials⁸⁻¹⁰.
SN - 0028-0836
SN - 1476-4687
ER -