Superconducting thermal detector (bolometer) of terahertz (sub-millimeter wave) radiation

摘要

A superconducting thermal detector (bolometer) of THz (sub-millimeter) wave radiation based on sensing the change in the amplitude or phase of a resonator circuit, consisting of a capacitor (Csh) and a superconducting temperature dependent inductor where the said inductor is thermally isolated from the heat bath (chip substrate) by micro-suspensions. The bolometer design includes a thin film inductor located on the membrane, a single or/and multi-layered thin film capacitor, and a thin film absorber of incoming radiation. The bolometer design can also include a lithographic antenna with antenna termination and/or a back reflector beneath the membrane for optimal wavelength detection by the resonance circuit. The superconducting thermal detector (bolometer) and arrays of these detectors operate in a temperature range from 1 Kelvin to 10 Kelvin.

主权项

1) A superconducting thermal detector comprising:
a. an absorbing element for absorbing electromagnetic radiation, b. a superconducting inductive element thermally isolated from a substrate and in thermal contact with the absorbing element, and c. a read-out circuit for indicating the absorbed electromagnetic radiation, d. wherein the superconducting inductive element is thermally isolated from the substrate by insulator layer micro-suspensions, e. wherein the superconducting inductive element is electrically connected to a capacitor in order to form a resonator circuit, and f. wherein the read-out circuit is implemented by sensing the change in amplitude and/or phase of the resonator circuit.