Classical Rotation of a Quantum Spin

Our paper on detecting phase shifts induced by physical rotation of a single NV centre has been published in Physical Review Letters as an Editor’s Suggestion, with an accompanying Focus article. This is the first time a quantum phase from classical rotation has been detected at the single-spin level, and these experiments demonstrate the fundamental connections between spin, physical rotation, and quantum phase. These results will be important for the development of nanoscale, diamond-based gyroscopes and other precision sensors where the rotational degree of freedom of a quantum system is not fixed, such as trapped nanoparticles containing spins.