NbN hot electron bolometric mixers-a new technology for low-noise THz receivers

Gerecht, Eyal; Musante, C.; Zhuang, Yan; Yngvesson, K. S.; Gol’tsman, G.; Voronov, B.; Gershenzon, E.

doi:10.1109/22.809001

Cited by 30 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…Owing to the fast photoresponse of NbN, 4 and with the availability of NbN ultrathin films and establishment of suitable nano-fabrication procedures to pattern these ultrathin films into desired nano-structures, HEBs and SSPDs made from NbN microstrips or nanowires have been widely explored. 5,6 Currently, such devices have found successful applications in a variety of important fields including radio astronomy, quantum information, and integrated circuit testing, etc. [1][2][3] As NbN is a conventional low-T c superconductor with a superconducting critical temperature T c ∼ 15 K, NbN-based HEBs and SSPDs are usually working at a temperature of around 4 K, which requires the usage of liquid helium or multi-stage cryocoolers and hence puts restrictions on the practical device applications.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fabrication of superconducting nanowires from ultrathin MgB2 films via focused ion beam milling

et al. 2015

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High quality superconducting nanowires were fabricated from ultrathin MgB2 films by a focused ion beam milling technique. The precursor MgB2 films in 10 nm thick were grown on MgO substrates by using a hybrid physical-chemical vapor deposition method. The nanowires, in widths of about 300-600 nm and lengths of 1 or 10 μm, showed high superconducting critical temperatures (Tc’s) above 34 K and narrow superconducting transition widths (ΔTc’s) of 1-3 K. The superconducting critical current density Jc of the nanowires was above 5 × 107 A/cm2 at 20 K. The high Tc, narrow ΔTc, and high Jc of the nanowires offered the possibility of making MgB2-based nano-devices such as hot-electron bolometers and superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors with high operating temperatures at 15-20 K.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fabrication of superconducting nanowires from ultrathin MgB2 films via focused ion beam milling

et al. 2015

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“…However, the development of superconducting versions [255], [256] of this basic concept has led to the most sensitive mixers at frequencies in the terahertz region that are beyond the reach of SIS mixers. HEB receiver systems are just now starting to be used for astronomy [257].…”

Section: Hot-electron Bolometer Mixersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The thermal relaxation time of the electrons can be made fast by choosing a material with a large electronphonon interaction, such as NbN [256], [258], [259], and using very thin films so that the phonons can escape into the substrate before being reabsorbed by the electrons. Alternatively, can be made rapid using electron outdiffusion [260].…”

Section: Hot-electron Bolometer Mixersmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Superconducting detectors and mixers for millimeter and submillimeter astrophysics

2004

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“…Another important benefit is that HEBs do not require as high a LO (Local Oscillator) power as a Schottky diode [8] [11].…”

Section: Chapter 2: P-heb Operationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigation of Ti-line and E-beam Fabrication Processes for Superconducting, Phonon Cooled Hot Electron Bolometers

Stronko

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Two processes were devised utilizing electron beam as well as optical lithography for fabricating niobium nitride (NbN) hot electron bolometers (HEB). This process was developed due to issues with an HEB fabrication method known as the "Ti-line" method. The Ti-line process utilized only optical lithographic means for making HEB devices. This was revolutionary in that HEB's need nano-scale features which usually necessitate the use of electron beam lithography. By being able to use optical lithographic mean to obtain nano-scale dimensions allows for faster throughput among other things. In all, the Ti-line method was an excellent means for fabricating Nb HEB devices. Unfortunately, when trying to make NbN HEBs the NbN material would have higher than normal resistances as well as resistances that would rise over time. After much work investigating the reason for the heightened resistance, it was determined that an oxygen plasma step was a major factor. Unfortunately there did not appear to be a way to process the HEBs using the Ti-line method without using the O 2 plasma.Electron beam lithography (ebl) is the current state of the art for fabricating HEB devices. In this work two mask designs were devised with the same basic end design as the Ti-line device design except that the new mask sets incorporate an ebl step. Along with this, the two processes have different ebl techniques for obtaining nano-scale dimensions. The reason for having two methods was the ebl system at the University of Virginia is an older system and was not always able to resolve small enough features. To the UVML students I worked with over the years. There are actually too many to name going back from when I started at UVa. I just want to say thank you for the collaboration and friendships. List of SymbolsMy predecessor on this project, Bert Herold, thank you for getting me up to speed on it in short order and all the work you put in.To Deborah Kidd, thank you for taking the time to get us started using the e-beam system. Jian Zhang and Jie Wang, your help and advice was not just appreciated but many times needed for processes to work correctly. I am grateful to have worked with you both over the years.To the UVML staff: Joe Beatrice, Alex Lobo, Michael Stogoski, Tim Pernell, and Harry Wade (ret.).Your knowledge, skill, and intuition kept the lab running when it probably shouldn't have. Also, I enjoyed our conversations on a variety of topics while repairing various pieces of equipment.Barbara Graves for help getting my admin items in order especially after I started work.Many thanks to my parents and brothers for their love, support, and encouragement. National Ground Intelligence Center and National Science Foundation for funding the project. . The basic operation of these HEB devices and basic mixer theory, will be described further in chapter 2.In the past decade a novel HEB fabrication method, called the Ti-Line process, was developed at the University of Virginia [7]. This fabrication method was radically different from other...

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NbN hot electron bolometric mixers-a new technology for low-noise THz receivers

Cited by 30 publications

References 10 publications

Fabrication of superconducting nanowires from ultrathin MgB2 films via focused ion beam milling

Fabrication of superconducting nanowires from ultrathin MgB2 films via focused ion beam milling

Superconducting detectors and mixers for millimeter and submillimeter astrophysics

Investigation of Ti-line and E-beam Fabrication Processes for Superconducting, Phonon Cooled Hot Electron Bolometers

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