Masers once represented the state-of-the-art in low noise microwave amplification technology, but eventually became obsolete due to their need for cryogenic cooling. Masers based on solid-state spin systems perform most effectively as amplifiers, since they provide a large density of spins and can therefore operate at relatively high powers. Whilst solid-state masers oscillators have been demonstrated at room temperature, continuous-wave amplification in these systems has only ever been realized at cryogenic temperatures. Here we report on a continuous-wave solid-state maser amplifier operating at room temperature. We achieve this feat using a practical setup that includes an ensemble of nitrogen-vacancy center spins in a diamond crystal, a strong permanent magnet and simple laser diode. We describe important amplifier characteristics including gain, bandwidth, compression power and noise temperature and discuss the prospects of realizing a room-temperature near-quantum-noise-limited amplifier with this system. Finally, we show that in a different mode of operation the spins can be used to cool the system noise in an external circuit to cryogenic levels, all without the requirement for physical cooling.
@article{arxiv.2405.07486,
title = {A Room-Temperature Solid-State Maser Amplifier},
author = {Tom Day and Maya Isarov and William J. Pappas and Brett C. Johnson and Hiroshi Abe and Takeshi Ohshima and Dane R. McCamey and Arne Laucht and Jarryd J. Pla},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2405.07486},
year = {2025}
}