Terahertz-frequency waveguide NbN hot-electron bolometer mixer

Author

Kawamura, Jonathan ; Tong, C. Y Edward ; Blundell, Raymond ; Papa, D Cosmo ; Hunter, Todd R. ; Patt, Ferdinand ; Gol´tsman, Gregory ; Gershenzon, Eugene

Author_Institution

Jet Propulsion Lab., Pasadena, CA, USA

Volume

11

Issue

1

fYear

2001

fDate

3/1/2001 12:00:00 AM

Firstpage

952

Lastpage

954

Abstract

We have developed a low-noise waveguide heterodyne receiver for operation near 1 THz using phonon-cooled NbN hot-electron bolometers. The mixer elements are submicron-sized microbridges of 4 nm-thick NbN film fabricated on a quartz substrate. Operating at a bath temperature of 4.2 K, the double-sideband receiver noise temperature is 760 K at 1.02 THz and 1100 K at 1.26 THz. The local oscillator is provided by solid-state sources, and power measured at the source is less than 1 μW. The intermediate frequency bandwidth exceeds 2 GHz. The receiver was used to make the first ground-based heterodyne detection of a celestial spectroscopic line above 1 THz

Keywords

bolometers; heterodyne detection; hot carriers; niobium compounds; submillimetre wave mixers; submillimetre wave receivers; superconducting device noise; superconducting microbridges; superconducting mixers; superconducting thin films; waveguide components; 1 muW; 1.02 THz; 1.26 THz; 2 GHz; 4.2 K; NbN; NbN thin film; celestial spectroscopic line; double sideband noise temperature; hot electron bolometer mixer; intermediate frequency bandwidth; local oscillator; phonon cooling; quartz substrate; solid-state source; superconducting microbridge; terahertz frequency waveguide heterodyne receiver; Bolometers; Frequency; Instruments; Local oscillators; Solid state circuits; Space technology; Submillimeter wave technology; Substrates; Telescopes; Temperature;

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Applied Superconductivity, IEEE Transactions on

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

1051-8223

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/77.919505

Filename

919505