%0 Conference Proceedings
%T Membrane-based HEB mixer for THz applications
%A Baubert, J.
%A Salez, M.
%A Delorme, Y.
%A Pons, P.
%A Goltsman, G.
%A Merkel, H.
%A Leconte, B.
%Y Chiao, J-C
%Y Varadan, V. K.
%Y Cané, C.
%S Proc. SPIE
%D 2003
%V 5116
%I SPIE
%F Baubert_etal2003
%O exported from refbase (https://db.rplab.ru/refbase/show.php?record=1520), last updated on Thu, 20 May 2021 19:56:46 -0500
%X We report in this paper a new concept for 2.7 THz superconducting Niobium nitride (NbN) Hot-Electron Bolometer mixer (HEB). The membrane process was developped for space telecommnunication applications a few years ago and the HEB mixer concept is now considered as the best choice for low-noise submillimeter-wave frequency heterodyne receivers. The idea is then to join these two technologies. The novel fabrication scheme is to fabricate a NbN HEB mixer on a 1 μm thick stress-less Si[sub:3]N[sub:4]/SiO[sub:2] membrane. This seems to present numerous improvements concerning : use at higher RF frequencies, power coupling efficiency, HEB mixer sensitivity, noise temperature, and space applications. This work is to be continued within the framework of an ESA TRP project, a 2.7 THz heterodyne camera with numerous applications including a SOFIA airborne receiver. This paper presents the whole fabrication process, the validation tests and preliminary results. Membrane-based HEB mixer theory is currently being investigated and further tests such as heterodyne and Fourier transform spectrometry measurement are planed shortly.
%K membrane NbN HEB mixers
%K heterodyne receiver
%K stress-less membrane
%K coupling efficiency
%K submillimeter-waves frequency
%K low-cost space applications
%R 10.1117/12.499158
%U https://doi.org/10.1117/12.499158
%P 551-562