Terahertz Phase Research Articles

Terahertz Characteristics of Mg-Doped CuCrO2 and Its Application to 2π Phase Modulators with High Tunable Capability

We have conducted a detailed characterization of the optical properties of Mg-doped CuCrO2 (CuCrO2: Mg) in the terahertz (THz) frequency range. By utilizing CuCrO2: Mg as transparent electrodes, we have demonstrated the approach for developing high-transmittance and low-operative-voltage THz phase shifters by electrically tuning liquid crystals (LCs). Unlike traditional indium-tin-oxide thin films, we have applied 600 nm-thick CuCrO2: Mg thin films as transparent electrodes, and our results show that this material has great potential for THz photonics. Specifically, the transparent electrode with THz transmission of ∼92% reveals the feasibility of CuCrO2: Mg as a suitable material for THz photonics applications. The phase shifter scheme, which employs a ∼2.2 mm-thick cell, achieves a THz transmittance ∼70%, a phase shift of more than 2π at 1.0 THz can be achieved even for low driving voltages of 14 V(rms). By considering the figure of merit (FOM) of LCs phase modulators defined in this work, the device based on CuCrO2: Mg thin film shows an FOM value of 17.99; much higher than previously reported values. These results suggest that functional electrodes based on CuCrO2: Mg thin films are promising components of THz and 6 G devices.

Design terahertz polarizers and vector polarized vortex terahertz wave generators based on the effective dielectric constant of metal gratings

Polarization and phase devices for terahertz waves have important applications in terahertz detection, imaging, communication, etc. Spatially variable metal gratings can be used for broad-spectrum, miniaturized, and low-cost terahertz polarization and phase modulation devices. Based on the effective dielectric constant and the theory of light propagation in multilayer media, we obtain the relationship between the transmittance and extinction ratio and the parameters such as the duty cycle of the metal grating, the frequency of the incident terahertz wave, the angle of incidence, the thickness of the metal grating, the refractive index of the substrate, and the thickness of the substrate. We propose a method of designing a spatially variable metal grating located on a transparent substrate. The designed spatially variable metal grating is also used to modulate the terahertz spatial polarization and phase to generate terahertz optical fields whose polarization and phase change simultaneously in space, such as azimuthally vector vortex terahertz optical fields, radially vector vortex terahertz optical fields, and so on. This will have important applications in terahertz time-domain spectroscopic detection, terahertz time-domain spectroscopic imaging, terahertz time-domain near-field microscopic imaging, terahertz communication, and so on.

Flexible terahertz phase shifter for optically controlled polydimethylsiloxane-vanadium dioxide composite film

In the terahertz (THz) band, modulation research has become a focal point, with precise control of the phase shift of THz waves playing a pivotal role. In this study, we investigate the optical control of THz phase shift modulation in a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-vanadium dioxide (VO2) flexible material using THz time-domain spectroscopy. Under the influence of an 808-nm continuous wave (CW) laser with power densities ranging from 0 to 2.74 W/cm2, the PDMS-VO2 flexible material exhibits significant phase shift modulation in the frequency range of 0.2 to 1.0 THz. The maximum optical-pumping phase shift reaches 0.27π rad at 1.0 THz in a composite material with a VO2 mass fraction of 5% and a thickness of 360 µm, and the amplitude transmittance from 0.2 THz to 1.0 THz exceeds 70%. Furthermore, the composite material exhibits good stability under at least 640 switching cycle times, as confirmed through repeatability tests. The proposed composite devices offer a new approach for more flexible phase shift modulation owing to the flexibility of the composite material and the non-contact and precise modulation of light control. Additionally, the stress-adjustable characteristics of flexible materials make them highly suitable for use in wearable THz modulators, highlighting their significant application potential.

Ultrawideband Solid-State Terahertz Phase Shifter Electrically Modulated by Tunable Conductive Interface in Total Internal Reflection Geometry

Ultrawideband Solid-State Terahertz Phase Shifter Electrically Modulated by Tunable Conductive Interface in Total Internal Reflection Geometry

A transmission-type terahertz beam reconfigurable metasurface based on a multilayer annular structure.

To achieve flexible control over terahertz beams, vanadium dioxide (VO2) with phase transition temperatures of 60 °C and 72 °C is selected. The effects of VO2 in its two states-insulator (before phase transition) and metallic (after phase transition)-on the amplitude and phase of the unit structure are analyzed. A terahertz beam reconfigurable phase gradient metasurface based on VO2 with different phase transition temperatures is designed. By adjusting the surrounding temperature, the metasurface demonstrated the capability to produce distinct beam deflection angles corresponding to different thermal conditions. Specifically, at a frequency of 1.35 THz, the beam deflection angle was measured at 0° for temperatures below 60 °C, 67.6° for temperatures ranging from 60 °C to 72 °C, and 27.5° for temperatures exceeding 72 °C. This VO2-based terahertz phase gradient metasurface with different phase transition temperatures provides a novel approach for the flexible control of terahertz beams, showing significant potential applications in terahertz transmission, imaging, and wireless communication.

Ultra-broadband high-efficiency cross-polarization conversion and amplitude-phase manipulable multi-functional wavefront manipulation based on terahertz metasurface

Drawing upon the physical phenomenon of polarization transformation, this paper proposes an ultra-broadband, high-efficiency linear polarization converter composed of a metallic grating, an L-shaped metallic patch, and a dielectric substrate. The polarization conversion properties have been scrutinized using the finite element numerical simulation software CST. The computational outcomes reveal that the polarization converter operates within the frequency range of 0.5 THz to 1.8 THz, exhibiting a relative bandwidth of 113%, a transmission coefficient exceeding 0.87, a polarization conversion efficiency approaching 100%, and a phase coverage spanning 360°. Furthermore, a Fabry–Perot interference model was established utilizing Matlab to corroborate the concurrence between the theoretical analysis and the numerical findings. The polarization converter metasurface amalgamates both phase and transmission amplitude variations to accomplish not only a two-dimensional focusing lens operating between 1.55 THz and 1.65 THz, but also a spatial imaging capability utilizing transmission amplitude variation within the 0.5 THz to 1.15 THz range. The outcomes demonstrate that the devised metasurface exhibits ultra-broadband and high transmission efficacy, thus providing novel insights for the versatility of terahertz wave polarization and phase manipulation.

An algorithm of unordered wavefront propagation in terahertz phase retrieval with dense multiplane data acquisition

Iterative phase retrieval algorithms from multiple diffraction patterns in the terahertz (THz) frequency range are a promising tool of computational imaging capable of providing high spatial resolution of reconstructed phase images. One of the commonly used algorithms is SBMIR, which employs multiple intensity distributions of the diffraction object wavefield as input data. Compared with single-frame methods, the multi-plane approach allows for a faster convergence, but requires time-consuming data acquisition from a receiver positioned at a variety of distances from the object. Previously, we proposed a method for THz data acquisition in a single scan mode, which allows one to quickly obtain an exhaustive set of diffraction distributions. In this paper we evaluate an up-to-date phase retrieval algorithm based on the SBMIR/R-SBMIR method (which utilizes stochastic wavefront propagation) on the experimental data captured by a single-scan technique. Unlike a number of conventional phase retrieval algorithms, which may require a series of numerical experiments for determining optimal intensity distributions from a large dataset, disordered propagation of the estimation wavefront guarantees the high-contrast and high-resolution image reconstruction without pre-setting the parameters. It is shown that the package use of the single-scan technique with the subsequent data processing using the R-SBMIR algorithm has application potential for automation of the multi-plane phase retrieval in the THz range.

Low terahertz frequency on-chip multi-functional modulator with amplitude and phase modulation

Terahertz amplitude and phase modulation technologies are crucial for terahertz communication, radar, and imaging. However, most current approaches can only achieve either amplitude or phase modulation. In this paper, we present a low terahertz frequency on-chip multi-functional modulator that consists of a hybrid coupler and reflection meta-structure. High-performance amplitude modulation is achieved by combining series resonant absorption of series coupling branch with resonance enhancement of parallel coupling branch in the reflection meta-structure. Meanwhile, the enhanced resonance provides a larger range of phase shifts, enabling effective amplitude and phase modulation in two different frequency regions. Therefore, we realize an amplitude modulation in the range of 115–135 GHz with a minimum transmission loss of 4 dB and a modulation depth of over 10 dB. At the same time, we achieved a continuous phase shift in the 103–113 GHz region, as well as a 180° two-bit phase shift in the 107–109 GHz range with only 5.7 dB transmission loss. Our simple method for terahertz amplitude and phase multi-functional modulation offers the potential to construe terahertz multifunctional integrated systems.

Frequency suppression of director oscillations in AC-driven liquid-crystal-based terahertz phase shifters.

Frequency-induced instability is widely present in nematic liquid crystals (LCs), which poses a problem in improving liquid-crystal-based phase-shift devices driven by alternating currents. Herein, the Fréedericksz transition of thick nematic LCs was investigated under alternating electric fields to reveal the suppression of frequency-induced instability in the low frequency range. By extending the Frank-Leslie equation to the AC-driven case, the response of the LC was numerically calculated, and the frequency threshold for suppressing the driven instability was estimated in conjunction with the perturbation method. Experimentally, the frequency suppression of LC fluctuations was verified by using applied electric fields. In addition, the root-mean-square-error of the refractive index was measured to be less than 2 × 10-5, which excludes the convective instability-generating domains in devices. It was revealed that the fabricated thick LC phase shifters provided a phase shift of more than 360° at 2 THz and can be used in the terahertz band. It was observed that the electrically driven phase-shift characteristics were in accordance with the theoretical results as the threshold frequency condition was satisfied. This work provides an experimental and theoretical reference for improving modulation performance and enhancing the characterization of AC-driven LC-based phase-shift devices.

Ultrawide tunable terahertz phase shifter based on a double-layer liquid crystal–dielectric grating

The ultrawide tunable terahertz (THz) phase shifter has always been in high demand by THz applications, especially in terms of broadband transmission and phase modulation. In this paper, we design and fabricate a composite device that combines a double-layer liquid crystal (LC) with a double-sided etched grating metasurface. By introducing the natural anisotropy of LC based on the artificial anisotropy of the metasurface, the anisotropy of the device is significantly enhanced, and this anisotropy can be dynamically modulated by an external field. When the LC molecules rotate in the x−y plane, the experimental results show that the phase difference can vary between −83∘ and 277° at 0.52 THz with a large phase-shift modulation depth of 360° (i.e., 2π). The same phase-shift modulation depth can be obtained when the LC molecules rotate in the x−z plane, in which the phase difference can vary between 207° and 567° at 1.14 THz. Our proposed composite device shows an ultrawide phase shift regulation and an ultra-large phase-shift modulation depth in the THz regime, which may provide a new strategy for various THz phase and polarization devices.

Laser diode based THz-TDS system with 133 dB peak signal-to-noise ratio at 100 GHz

Terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) has emerged as a powerful and versatile tool in various scientific fields. These include—among others—imaging, material characterization, and layer thickness measurements. While THz-TDS has achieved significant success in research environments, the high cost and bulky nature of most systems have hindered widespread commercialization of this technology. Two primary factors contributing to the size and cost of these systems are the laser and the optical delay unit (ODU). Consequently, our group has focused on developing THz-TDS systems based on compact monolithic mode-locked laser diodes (MLLDs). The ultra-high repetition rate (UHRR) of the MLLD has the added benefit that it allows us to utilize shorter ODUs, thereby reducing the overall cost and size of our systems. However, achieving the necessary precision in the ODU to acquire accurate terahertz time-domain signals remains a crucial aspect. To address this issue, we have developed and enhanced an interferometric extension for UHRR-THz-TDS systems. This extension is inexpensive, compact, and easy to incorporate. In this article, we present the system setup, the extension itself, and the algorithmic procedure for reconstructing the delay axis based on the interferometric reference signal. We evaluate a dataset comprising 10,000 signal traces and report a standard deviation of the measured terahertz phase at 1.6 THz as low as 3 mrad. Additionally, we demonstrate a remaining peak-to-peak jitter of only 20 fs and a record-high peak signal-to-noise ratio of 133 dB at 100 GHz after averaging. The method presented in this paper allows for simplified THz-TDS system builds, reducing bulk and cost. As a result, it further facilitates the transition of terahertz technologies from laboratory to field applications.

Coherent terahertz laser feedback interferometry for hydration sensing in leaves.

The response of terahertz to the presence of water content makes it an ideal analytical tool for hydration monitoring in agricultural applications. This study reports on the feasibility of terahertz sensing for monitoring the hydration level of freshly harvested leaves of Celtis sinensis by employing a imaging platform based on quantum cascade lasers and laser feedback interferometry. The imaging platform produces wide angle high resolution terahertz amplitude and phase images of the leaves at high frame rates allowing monitoring of dynamic water transport and other changes across the whole leaf. The complementary information in the resulting images was fed to a machine learning model aiming to predict relative water content from a single frame. The model was used to predict the change in hydration level over time. Results of the study suggest that the technique could have substantial potential in agricultural applications.

Large dynamic range terahertz phase modulator based on graphene-metal hybrid metasurface

Terahertz (THz) dynamic phase modulator is indispensable in THz wireless communications, high-resolution imaging and radar systems. However, up to now, it is difficult to achieve dynamic tunable phase shift of more than 150 degrees in single-layer transmission mode. In this work, we proposed a THz dynamic large phase modulator based on graphene-metal hybrid metasurface. The simulation results show that, when the Fermi level of graphene changes from 0 eV to 0.86 eV, the phase shift exceeds 176 degrees. By modifying the structural parameters, a phase shift of 170 degrees can be achieved in a bandwidth of 50 GHz. We investigated the physical mechanism of the dynamic phase modulator, and established the relationship between phase shift and Fermi level theoretically. This study paves a new way for realizing dynamic large phase modulation, which is very important for the THz broadband wireless communication, high-resolution imaging and radar system.

BICs-enhanced active terahertz wavefront modulator enabled by laser-cut graphene ribbons

Graphene-based terahertz (THz) metasurfaces combined with metallic antennas have the advantages of ultra-small thickness, electrical tunability, and fast tuning speed. However, their tuning ability is limited by non-independently tunable pixels and low modulation depth due to the ultra-small thickness of graphene. Here, we demonstrate a reconfigurable THz phase modulator with 5×5 independently tunable units enabled by switching the voltages applied on 10 graphene ribbons prepared by laser cutting. In addition, by introducing quasi-bound states in the continuum resonance through a designed double C-shaped antenna, the efficiency of the device is enhanced by 2.7–3.6 times under different graphene chemical potentials. Experimental results demonstrate that a focus can be formed, and the focal length is changed from 14.3 mm to 22.6 mm. This work provides potential for compact THz spatial light modulators that may be applied in THz communication, detection, and imaging.

Terahertz Metasurface Modulators Based on Photosensitive Silicon

AbstractMetasurfaces solve the lack of materials in the terahertz (THz) band and control precisely the amplitude, phase, polarization, and transmission characteristics of THz waves, providing an effective way to realize THz functional devices. This article focuses on the design of THz metasurface modulators with a unit structure consisting of metal square rings, including resonance frequency, phase, and amplitude modulators. By embedding photosensitive semiconductor silicon (Si) in the unit structure, the unit structure is built from meta‐atom to molecularization model under the optical pumping condition, and the resonance frequencies are switched between high and low frequencies. The resonance frequency switchable characteristic is demonstrated using the equivalent LC oscillation circuit model, and the theoretical calculation results agree well with the simulations. Through theoretical calculations, the modulators achieve ultrafast switching times of less than 0.141 ps by the optical pumps, which have significant advantages in ultrafast THz modulators. By continuing to change the embedded position of the silicon in the unit structure, not only is a wide range of THz phase modulation achieved, but also multilevel modulation of the phase is realized. It is found that there is a strong relationship between the modulation depth and phase variation of THz waves, and a reasonable analysis is given. Further the amplitude modulator with a larger modulation depth (MD) is developed, and when the conductivity of photosensitive semiconductor silicon (σSi) reaches 2.5 × 106 S m−1, return loss (RL) is ≈0 dB, and the maximum MD reaches ≈100%; in order to gain insight into the nature of modulation, the modulation mechanism of THz waves under optical pumping conditions is analyzed. In addition, graphene‐based THz metasurface amplitude modulators are designed. When the depth of amplitude modulation is achieved by bias voltage modulation of the Fermi energy level of graphene, the maximum modulation amplitude is 23.42 dB, with a minimal modulation accuracy of 0.05 THz eV−1. In the article, the designed modulators have extremely excellent modulation performance. It has great potential applications in silicon‐based THz photonic devices, ultrahigh frequency electronic devices, high sensitivity sensors, and high‐precision imaging.

Reversibly switching liquid crystals between three orthogonal orientation states for use in rapid-response THz phase shifters.

Liquid crystal (LC) devices for terahertz phase shifters inevitably use a thick cell gap for the required retardation, severely delaying the LC response. To improve the response, we virtually demonstrate novel LC switching between in-plane and out-of-plane for reversible switching between three orthogonal orientation states, broadening the range of continuous phase shifts. This LC switching is realized using a pair of substrates, each with two pairs of orthogonal finger-type electrodes and one grating-type electrode for in- and out-of-plane switching. An applied voltage generates an electric field that drives each switching process between the three distinct orientation states, enabling a rapid response.

Terahertz phase shift sensing and identification of a chiral amino acid based on a protein-modified metasurface through the isoelectric point and peptide bonding.

The efficient sensing of amino acids, especially the distinction of their chiral enantiomers, is important for biological, chemical, and pharmaceutical research. In this work, a THz phase shift sensing method was performed for amino acid detection based on a polarization-dependent electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) metasurface. More importantly, a method for binding the specific amino acids to the functional proteins modified on the metasurface was developed based on the isoelectric point theory so that the specific recognition for Arginine (Arg) was achieved among the four different amino acids. The results show that via high-Q phase shift, the detection precision for L-Arg is 2.5 × 10-5 g /ml, much higher than traditional sensing parameters. Due to the specific electrostatic adsorption by the functionalized metasurface to L-Arg, its detection sensitivity and precision are 22 times higher than the other amino acids. Furthermore, by comparing nonfunctionalized and functionalized metasurfaces, the D- and L-chiral enantiomers of Arg were distinguished due to their different binding abilities to the functionalized metasurface. Therefore, this EIT metasurface sensor and its specific binding method improve both detection precision and specificity in THz sensing for amino acids, and it will promote the development of THz highly sensitive detection of chiral enantiomers.

Ultrafast Electron Microscopy of Nanoscale Charge Dynamics in Semiconductors.

The ultrafast dynamics of charge carriers in solids plays a pivotal role in emerging optoelectronics, photonics, energy harvesting, and quantum technology applications. However, the investigation and direct visualization of such nonequilibrium phenomena remains as a long-standing challenge, owing to the nanometer-femtosecond spatiotemporal scales at which the charge carriers evolve. Here, we propose and demonstrate an interaction mechanism enabling nanoscale imaging of the femtosecond dynamics of charge carriers in solids. This imaging modality, which we name charge dynamics electron microscopy (CDEM), exploits the strong interaction of free-electron pulses with terahertz (THz) near fields produced by the moving charges in an ultrafast scanning transmission electron microscope. The measured free-electron energy at different spatiotemporal coordinates allows us to directly retrieve the THz near-field amplitude and phase, from which we reconstruct movies of the generated charges by comparison to microscopic theory. The CDEM technique thus allows us to investigate previously inaccessible spatiotemporal regimes of charge dynamics in solids, providing insight into the photo-Dember effect and showing oscillations of photogenerated electron-hole distributions inside a semiconductor. Our work facilitates the exploration of a wide range of previously inaccessible charge-transport phenomena in condensed matter using ultrafast electron microscopy.

Terahertz phase modulator based on a metal-VO2 reconfigurable metasurface.

Actively controlling the phase of a terahertz (THz) wave is of great significance for beaming, tunable focusing, and holography. We present a THz phase modulator based on an electrically triggered vanadium dioxide (V O 2) reconfigurable metasurface. The unit cell of the device consists of two split-ring resonators embedded with a V O 2 ribbon. By electrically triggering the insulator-to-metal transition of V O 2, the resonance mode and resonance intensity of the unit cell can be dynamically controlled. The simulation results show that the structure can achieve a phase shift of about 360° in the range of 1.03-1.13THz, and the reflection amplitude can reach 80%. The device has potential applications in THz imaging, radar, broadband wireless communications, and array phase control.

Terahertz multibeam modulation reflection-coded metasurface

Most of reported coding metasurfaces only use phase encoding or amplitude encoding to regulate electromagnetic waves, which limits the flexibility of terahertz wave regulation. In this work, a metasurface element structure is proposed. The metasurface element is composed of three layers, i.e. metal pattern structure layer, intermediate medium layer, and metal base layer. According to the geometric phase principle, the phase coverage in the 2π range can be achieved by rotating the metal pattern structure layer under the incidence of the circular-polarized terahertz wave. The metasurface element structure is arranged reasonably by using the phase coding, and the 1-bit and 2-bit phase coding metasurface are designed. First of all, the coding metasurface with interlacing “0” and “1” is designed to generate a double beam reflection under the vertical incidence of circular polarized terahertz waves, while the two-dimensional checkerboard coding metasurface with “0” and “1” generates a symmetrical four-beam reflection. In addition, the metasurface is designed to deflect the reflected beam, and the coding period is changed to design the metasurface to deflect the reflected beam to the specified angle, showing good flexibility. Finally, the convolutional operation is introduced to flexibly regulate the circular polarized beam, and the functions of beam splitting and reflection beam deflection are obtained. The amplitude coded metasurface is designed under theincidence of the online polarized terahertz wave, and the near-field imaging effect can be realized by the amplitude differentiation of polarization reflection. The designed amplitude coded metasurface realizes the function of imaging in space, presenting the designed “CJLU” pattern, which has different imaging effects at different observation locations. When the observation plane distance is 80 μm at the observation frequency of 1.22 THz, the near-field imaging effect is best. In conclusion, we propose a terahertz multibeam modulation reflection-coded metasurface, which combines geometric phase and amplitude variation to achieve different terahertz wave modulation functions under different polarization incident terahertz waves. The results from the simulated near-field radiation model and the far-field radiation model are both in agreement with the theoretical calculation predictions. The designed metasurface provides a degree of freedom method for terahertz wave polarization and phase manipulation, which greatly improves the efficiency of terahertz wave manipulation and has potential applications in terahertz systems.