The spectral shape and intensity of the optical signals from the NV centers are sensitive to external perturbation, such as temperature, strain, electric and magnetic field. However, the use of spectral shape for sensing those perturbation is impractical, as the diamond would have to be cooled to cryogenic temperatures to sharpen the NV signals. A more realistic approach is to use luminescence intensity (rather than lineshape), which exhibits a sharp resonance when a microwave frequency is applied to diamond that matches the splitting of the ground-state levels. The resulting optically detected magnetic resonance signals are sharp even at room temperature, and can be used in miniature sensors. Such sensors can detect magnetic fields of a few nanotesla or electric fields of about 10 V/cm at kilohertz frequencies after 100 seconds of averaging. This sensitivity allows detecting a magnetic or electric field produced by a single electron located tens of nanometers away from an NV center.
Using the same mechanism, the NV centers were employed in scanning thermal microscopy to measure high-resolution spatial maps of temperature and thermal conductivity (see image).
Because the NV center is sensitive to magnetic fields, it is being actively used in scanning probe measurements to study myriad condensed matter phenomena both through measuring a spatially varying magnetic field or inferring local currents in a device.
Another possible use of the NV centers is as a detector to measure the full mechanical stress tensor in the bulk of the crystal. For this application, the stress-induced splitting of the zero-phonon-line is exploited, and its polarization properties. A robust frequency-modulated radio receiver using the electron-spin-dependent photoluminescence that operated up to 350 °C demonstrates the possibility for use in extreme conditions.
In addition to the quantum optical applications, luminescence from the NV centers can be applied for imaging biological processes, such as fluid flow in living cells. This application relies on good compatibility of diamond nano-particles with the living cells and on favorable properties of photoluminescence from the NV centers (strong intensity, easy excitation and detection, temporal stability, etc.). Compared with large single-crystal diamonds, nanodiamonds are cheap (about 1 USD per gram) and available from various suppliers. NV centers are produced in diamond powders with sub-micrometre particle size using the standard process of irradiation and annealing described above. Due to the relatively small size of nanodiamond, NV centers can be produced by irradiating nanodiamond of 100 nm or less with medium energy H+ beam. This method reduces the required ion dose and reaction, making it possible to mass produce fluorescent nanodiamonds in ordinary laboratory.  Fluorescent nanodiamond produced with such method is bright and photostable, making it excellent for long-term, three dimensional tracking of single particle in living cell. Those nanodiamonds are introduced in a cell, and their luminescence is monitored using a standard fluorescence microscope.
Stimulated emission from the NV center has been demonstrated, though it could be achieved only from the phonon side-band (i.e. broadband light) and not from the ZPL. For this purpose, the center has to be excited at a wavelength longer than ~650 nm, as higher-energy excitation ionizes the center.
The first continuous-wave room-temperature maser has been demonstrated. It used 532-nm pumped NV centers held within a high Purcell factor microwave cavity and an external magnetic field of 4300 G. Continuous maser oscillation generated a coherent signal at ~9.2 GHz.
The NV center can have a very long spin coherence time approaching the second regime. This is advantageous for applications in quantum sensing and quantum communication. Disadvantageous for these applications is the long radiative lifetime (~12 ns
) of the NV center and the strong phonon sideband in its emission spectrum. Both issues can be addressed by putting the NV center in an optical cavity.