A 1.5 THz hot electron bolometer receiver for ground-based terahertz astronomy in northern Chile

C.-Y. Edward Tong; Jonathan Kawamura; Daniel Marrone; Denis Loudkov; Scott Paine; Raymond Blundell; Claudio Barrientos; Daniel Lühr

doi:10.1117/12.686058

18 October 2006 A 1.5 THz hot electron bolometer receiver for ground-based terahertz astronomy in northern Chile

C.-Y. Edward Tong, Jonathan Kawamura, Daniel Marrone, Denis Loudkov, Scott Paine, Raymond Blundell, Claudio Barrientos, Daniel Lühr

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 6373, Terahertz Physics, Devices, and Systems; 63730U (2006) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.686058
Event: Optics East 2006, 2006, Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Abstract

A 1.5 THz superconducting receiver has been in operation at the Receiver Lab Telescope of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Northern Chile since December 2004. This receiver incorporates a Hot Electron Bolometer (HEB) mixer chip made from a thin film of Niobium Titanium Nitride (NbTiN), which is mounted in a precisionmachined waveguide mixer block attached to a corrugated waveguide horn assembly. With a noise temperature of around 1500 K, this receiver is sensitive enough for use in the pioneering field of ground-based terahertz spectral-line astronomy. A number of innovative techniques have been employed in the construction and deployment of this receiver. These include near-field vector beam mapping to enable accurate coupling to the telescope optics, the use of tunerless planar-diode based local oscillator unit capable of generating a few μW at 1.5 THz, and special calibration techniques required for terahertz astronomy. In this paper, we will report on the design, set-up and operation of this state-of-the-art instrument.

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C.-Y. Edward Tong, Jonathan Kawamura, Daniel Marrone, Denis Loudkov, Scott Paine, Raymond Blundell, Claudio Barrientos, and Daniel Lühr "A 1.5 THz hot electron bolometer receiver for ground-based terahertz astronomy in northern Chile", Proc. SPIE 6373, Terahertz Physics, Devices, and Systems, 63730U (18 October 2006); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.686058

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