Open AccessBroadband terahertz imaging with highly sensitive silicon CMOS detectors
Author(s) -
F. Schuster,
Dominique Coquillat,
H. Videlier,
M. Sakowicz,
Ф. Теппе,
Laurent Dussopt,
B. Giffard,
T. Skotnicki,
W. Knap
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.19.007827
Subject(s) - terahertz radiation , noise equivalent power , responsivity , optics , detector , optoelectronics , materials science , cmos , nmos logic , broadband , antenna (radio) , silicon , photodetector , transistor , physics , electrical engineering , voltage , quantum mechanics , engineering
This paper investigates terahertz detectors fabricated in a low-cost 130 nm silicon CMOS technology. We show that the detectors consisting of a nMOS field effect transistor as rectifying element and an integrated bow-tie coupling antenna achieve a record responsivity above 5 kV/W and a noise equivalent power below 10 pW/Hz(0.5) in the important atmospheric window around 300 GHz and at room temperature. We demonstrate furthermore that the same detectors are efficient for imaging in a very wide frequency range from ~0.27 THz up to 1.05 THz. These results pave the way towards high sensitivity focal plane arrays in silicon for terahertz imaging.