"JOURNAL OF RADIO ELECTRONICS"  N 12, 2012

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TERMOACOUSTIC PROBE for the DETECTION OF microsecond TERAHERTZ PULSES

 

V. G. Andreev 1, V. A. Vdovin 2 , Yu. K. Kalynov 3

1 Lomonosov Moscow State University, Faculty of Physics
2 Kotel'nikov Institute of Radio Engineering and Electronics of RAS

3 Applied Physics Institute of RAS
 

Received December 11, 2012

 

Abstract. The design and general concept of operation of a thermoacoustic detector for measurements of terahertz microsecond pulses are discussed. Operation of the detector is based on effect of acoustic signal generation when electromagnetic pulses are absorbed in the layered structure: radiotransparent substrate – absorber – immersion liquid. Thin metallic film of nanometer thickness sputtered onto the quartz substrate is used as an absorber. The transformation of electromagnetic radiation into acoustic pulse is performed in the film and in the liquid contacting with the film. The acoustic pulse is detected by the broadband acoustic transducer and registered with a digital oscilloscope. Application of the laboratory prototype of the thermoacoustic probe was for detection of terahertz microsecond pulses generated by the large-orbit gyrotron is discussed.

Keywords: thermoacoustic detector, terahertz microsecond pulses, acoustic signal generation, thin metallic film of nanometer thickness, gyrotron.