Towards Chemical Structure Resolution with Nanoscale Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Abstract

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy has become a prime means of determining chemical structure. Currently nanoscale NMR has the sensitivity for single-spin detection, yet its resolution is too poor. The authors using diamond NV centers to improve spectral resolution by orders of magnitude, to the subkilohertz regime, which is sufficient to resolve chemical shifts in magnetic fields of a few tesla. This could be used in identification of the structure of an individual molecule, with major implications for drug design and chemical (especially biochemical) analysis.