Open AccessAntenna Integrated THz Uni-Traveling Carrier Photodiodes
Author(s) -
Cyril C. Renaud,
Michele Natrella,
Chris Graham,
James Seddon,
Frederic Van Dijk,
Alwyn J. Seeds
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
ieee journal of selected topics in quantum electronics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.131
H-Index - 159
eISSN - 1558-4542
pISSN - 1077-260X
DOI - 10.1109/jstqe.2017.2725444
Subject(s) - engineered materials, dielectrics and plasmas , photonics and electrooptics
High-speed photodiodes are a key element of numerous photonic systems. With the development of potential applications in the THz range such as sensing, spectroscopy, and wireless transmission, devices with integrated antenna covering the frequency range from 0.1 to 3 THz will become essential. In this paper, we discuss the development of uni-traveling carrier photodiodes with integrated antennas to address that need. In particular we develop the key elements to present a simple design tool for the efficient integration of the device with an antenna. We also present fabricated device results that show the highest figure of merit to date for photonic THz emitters. When integrated with well-matched antennas the devices have achieved record level of power up to 1 THz compared to other published photomixers. We also show that these devices can be used as receivers at frequencies up to 560 GHz with conversion losses of the order of 30 dB.