Towards quantum-limited coherent detection of terahertz waves in charge-neutral graphene
arXiv:1904.03247 · doi:10.1038/s41550-019-0843-7
Abstract
Spectacular advances in heterodyne astronomy with both the Herschel Space Observatory and Stratospheric Observatory for Far Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) have been largely due to breakthroughs in detector technology. In order to exploit the full capacity of future THz telescope space missions (e.g. Origins Space Telescope), new concepts of THz coherent receivers are needed, providing larger bandwidths and imaging capabilities with multi-pixel focal plane heterodyne arrays. Here we show that graphene, uniformly doped to the Dirac point, enables highly sensitive and wideband coherent detection of THz signals. With material resistance dominated by quantum localization, and thermal relaxation governed by electron diffusion, proof-of-concept graphene bolometers demonstrate a gain bandwidth of 8 GHz and a mixer noise temperature of 475 K, limited by residual thermal background in our setup. An optimized device will result in a mixer noise temperature as low as 36 K, with the gain bandwidth exceeding 20 GHz, and a Local Oscillator power lower than 100 pW. In conjunction with the emerging quantum-limited amplifiers at the intermediate frequency, our approach promises quantum-limited sensing in the THz domain, potentially surpassing superconducting technologies, particularly for large heterodyne arrays.
arXiv comment15 pages, 4 figures
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- Hot Carrier Thermalization and Josephson Inductance Thermometry in a Graphene-based Microwave Circuit
- Large responsivity of graphene radiation detectors with thermoelectric readout
- Optimized proximity thermometer for ultrasensitive detection: Role of an ohmic electromagnetic environment
- The science case and challenges of space-borne sub-millimeter interferometry