Key Points
- Diamond nanoparticles offer promising quantum sensing capabilities inside living cells.
- Traditional nanodiamond sensors showed reduced performance due to surface interference.
- Researchers added a siloxane shell inspired by QLED TV technology. The new coating improved quantum coherence by up to four times.
- The shell also reduced immune detection and increased signal stability. The study provides a new theoretical model for engineering quantum surfaces.
Researchers from the University of Chicago and the University of Iowa have developed a groundbreaking quantum biosensor capable of functioning inside living cells, potentially transforming early disease detection, including cancer diagnosis. The study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows how diamond nanoparticles—known for hosting highly sensitive quantum sensors—can be enhanced through a new surface engineering technique inspired by QLED television technology.
Quantum sensors, particularly those built into diamond nanocrystals, offer extreme sensitivity for detecting cellular processes. However, their performance has historically been poor when miniaturized to fit inside cells. According to lead author and Ph.D. candidate Uri Zvi, previous attempts using these nanodiamonds failed to deliver the expected quantum signal strength due to surface-level disruptions.
To overcome this, Zvi and colleagues took inspiration from quantum dot LEDs in televisions. A special shell coating stabilizes bright but unstable light emissions in those devices. The research team adapted this idea to the biological context by designing a silicon-oxygen (siloxane) shell to coat the diamond nanoparticles. This coating enhances quantum performance and evades detection by the immune system.
The results were striking: up to a fourfold improvement in spin coherence, a 1.8x boost in fluorescence, and increased charge stability. These gains were significantly greater than expected, prompting further investigation. The team found that the shell altered electron behavior at the material’s surface, reducing factors that normally interfere with quantum coherence.
This interdisciplinary breakthrough united quantum physicists, immunoengineers, and materials scientists. Their combined efforts created a better quantum sensor for biological environments and offered new theoretical insights into surface interactions affecting quantum systems.
“This is not just an improvement in sensitivity,” said Zvi. “It’s a new framework for engineering quantum materials for use in biology.”
