Development of THz superconducting mixers and detectors

Although it has long been known of rich scientific opportunities, the terahertz (THz) regime remains the last frequency window to be fully explored in astronomy. One difficulty is that the earth´s atmosphere has significant absorption for THz signals, while the other is the technical challenge of developing sensitive coherent and incoherent detectors. With outstanding sensitivity, superconducting mixers and detectors are playing an increasingly important role in astronomy. In this paper, the latest results for the THz superconducting mixers and detectors developed at Purple Mountain Observatory (PMO), CAS, are presented.