Electro-optic crystals and photoconductive dipole antennas have been widely used in terahertz (THz) time-domain spectroscopy and related imaging applications. In the standard apparatus used for THz time-domain spectroscopy a separate transmitter and receiver are used for the emission and detection of the THz signal. Because detection is the reverse process of emission, the transmitter and the receiver can be identical devices. Despite advantages to be gained by using a single device as both a transmitter and a receiver (a transceiver), terahertz transceivers have not previously been known or used in the art, primarily because of perceived technical hurdles and inherent complexity, such as the difficulty of providing an acceptable signal-to-noise ratio. This invention is directed to a terahertz transceiver device that replaces the requirement of employing a separate terahertz transmitter and a terahertz receiver. The device transmits pulsed electromagnetic radiation at one or more terahertz frequencies and receives the returned signals.

Submission Date
Reference Number
R00-011
Department
Contact
Natasha Sanford