Published in

American Chemical Society, Nano Letters, 1(12), p. 96-101, 2011

DOI: 10.1021/nl2030486

Quantum Sensing and Nanophotonic Devices IX

DOI: 10.1117/12.909408

Links

Tools

Export citation

Search in Google Scholar

Room-Temperature Terahertz Detectors Based on Semiconductor Nanowire Field-Effect Transistors

This paper is available in a repository.
This paper is available in a repository.

Full text: Download

Green circle
Preprint: archiving allowed
  • Must obtain written permission from Editor
  • Must not violate ACS ethical Guidelines
Orange circle
Postprint: archiving restricted
  • Must obtain written permission from Editor
  • Must not violate ACS ethical Guidelines
Red circle
Published version: archiving forbidden
Data provided by SHERPA/RoMEO

Abstract

The growth of semiconductor nanowires (NWs) has recently opened new paths to silicon integration of device families such as light-emitting diodes, high-efficiency photovoltaics, or high-responsivity photodetectors. It is also offering a wealth of new approaches for the development of a future generation of nanoelectronic devices. Here we demonstrate that semiconductor nanowires can also be used as building blocks for the realization of high-sensitivity terahertz detectors based on a 1D field-effect transistor configuration. In order to take advantage of the low effective mass and high mobilities achievable in III-V compounds, we have used InAs nanowires, grown by vapor-phase epitaxy, and properly doped with selenium to control the charge density and to optimize source-drain and contact resistance. The detection mechanism exploits the nonlinearity of the transfer characteristics: the terahertz radiation field is fed at the gate-source electrodes with wide band antennas, and the rectified signal is then read at the output in the form of a DC drain voltage. Significant responsivity values (>1 V/W) at 0.3 THz have been obtained with noise equivalent powers (NEP) < 2 × 10(-9) W/(Hz)(1/2) at room temperature. The large existing margins for technology improvements, the scalability to higher frequencies, and the possibility of realizing multipixel arrays, make these devices highly competitive as a future solution for terahertz detection.