Burst eddy current testing with diamond magnetometry

In this work, a burst eddy current testing technique based on the employment of a diamond nitrogen vacancy (NV) center magnetometer with the Hahn echo (HE) sequence is demonstrated. With the confocal experiment apparatus, the HE-based NV magnetometer attains a magnetic sensitivity of 4.3 nT / H z and a volume-normalized sensitivity of 3.6 pT / H z mm - 3, which are ∼five times better than the already existing method under the same conditions. Based on the proposed magnetometer configuration, a burst eddy current testing prototype achieves a minimum detectable sample smaller than 300 μ m and a spatial resolution of 470 μ m, which is employed to image different metallic specimens and detect layered internal structures. Since this prototype comprises remarkable high sensitivity, it exhibits various potential applications in the fields of security screening and quality control. Moreover, its biocompatibility and promising nanoscale resolution pave the way for electromagnetic testing in the fields of biomaterials.