US Patent 10168393 Micro-vacancy center device

A method for providing a miniature vector magnetometer includes embedding a micron-sized diamond nitrogen-vacancy (DNV) crystal into a bonding material. The bonding material including the embedded micron-sized DNV crystal is cured to form a micro-DNV sensor. A micro-DNV assembly is formed by integrating the micro-DNV sensor with a micro-radio-frequency (RF) source, a micron-sized light source, a reference bias magnet, and one or more micro-photo detectors. The micro-DNV assembly is operable to perform vector magnetometry when positioned in an external magnetic field.