Bang-bang optimal control of large spin systems: Enhancement of (13)C-(13)C singlet-order at natural abundance.

Using a bang-bang optimal control technique, we transfer polarization from a set of abundant high-γ nuclei directly to singlet order of a low-γ spin-pair. This approach is analogous to algorithmic cooling (AC) procedure used in quantum state purification. Specifically, we apply this method for enhancing the singlet order in a natural abundant (13)C- (13)C spin pair by exploiting nine equivalent protons of an 11-spin system. Compared to the standard method not involving polarization transfer, we find an enhancement of singlet order by about 3.4 times. In addition, since the singlet magnetization is contributed by the faster relaxing protons, the recycle delay is halved. Thus effectively we observe a reduction in the overall experimental time by a factor of 23. We also discuss a possible extension of AC, known as heat-bath algorithmic cooling (HBAC).