High contrast dual-mode optical and hyperpolarized ¹³C magnetic resonance imaging in diamond particles

Multichannel imaging - the ability to acquire images of an object through more than one imaging mode simultaneously - has opened exciting new avenues in several areas from astronomy to biomedicine. Visible optics and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) offer complementary advantages of resolution, speed and depth of penetration, and as such would be attractive in combination. In this work, we integrate optical and MR imaging in diamond particles endowed with a high density of quantum defects, Nitrogen Vacancy (NV) centers. Under optical excitation, NV centers fluoresce brightly in the visible, as well as electron spin polarize, allowing the hyperpolarization of lattice ¹³C nuclei. Leveraging the ability of optical and MR imaging to simultaneously probe Fourier-reciprocal domains (real and k-space), we elucidate a hybrid sub-sampling protocol in both conjugate spaces to vastly accelerate dual-image acquisition, while concurrently reducing the net optical power, by two orders of magnitude in sparse-imaging scenarios. In addition, we demonstrate background-free imaging in optical and MR domains respectively. This work portends new avenues for quantum-enhanced dual-mode imaging platforms and opens possibilities for new therapeutic avenues including in low-field MRI-guided endoscopy.