Publications

Terahertz heterodyne receiver based on a quantum cascade laser and a superconducting bolometer

Gao, J.R.; Hovenier, J.N.; Yang, Z.Q.; Baselmans, J.J.A.; Baryshev, A.; Hajenius, M.; Klapwijk, T.M.; Adam, A.J.L.; Klaassen, T.O.; Williams, B.S.; Kumar, S.; Hu, Q.; Reno, J.L.

We report the first demonstration of an all solid-state heterodyne receiver that can be used for high-resolution spectroscopy above 2 THz suitable for space-based observatories. The receiver uses a NbN superconducting hot-electron bolometer as mixer and a quantum cascade laser operating at 2.8 THz as local oscillator. We measure a double sideband receiver noise temperature of 1400 K at 2.8 THz and 4.2 K, and find that the free-running QCL has sufficient power stability for a practical receiver, demonstrating an unprecedented combination of sensitivity and stability. © 2005 American Institute of Physics.