Next-generation communication systems require rapid and efficient control of terahertz (THz) signals to encode data streams. Graphene-based metamaterials emerge as a promising candidate for effective THz modulation as a result of graphene’s large electrically controllable conductivity. However, a significant challenge arises from the inability of graphene to achieve full depletion at the Dirac point, limiting the modulation depth in most LC-resonant metamaterial modulators in transmission. To overcome this limitation, we exploit the destructive interference of Fresnel reflection components. Our study shows single-layer, solid-state graphene-based modulators operating in the terahertz range with several orders of magnitude modulation depth, validated through terahertz time-domain spectroscopy measurements. These findings underscore the potential of graphene-based metamaterials in advancing THz communication technologies.
A novel, quantum mechanism, the in-plane photoelectric effect, which enables a large terahertz (THz) photoresponse in gated two-dimensional electron gases (2DEGs), was recently discovered. To develop the mechanism further, a systematic study is carried out in this work using a dual-gated photoelectric tunable-step (PETS) terahertz detector based on a GaAs-AlGaAs heterojunction. The electric field distribution within the 2DEG channel is simulated and integrated to obtain the radiation-induced ac potential difference as a function of the 2DEG depth and the gap size to investigate the parameter dependence of the THz photoresponse. Based on the simulation results, we design, optimize, and fabricate a dipole-antenna PETS THz detector with 2DEG depth d = 90 nm and gap size b = 190 nm, which shows a strong photoresponse to 1.9 THz radiation.
The realization of next-generation communication systems requires fast and efficient THz signal control, enabling a data stream to be encoded into a THz-frequency signal. This requires modulators with both a high modulation depth and reconfiguration speed; both are important figures of merit for communication devices. Metamaterial modulators using a brickwork antenna structure have recently shown promising performance below 1 THz. In our work, we designed, fabricated, and characterised a solid-state optical intensity modulator operating at 2.2 THz using a single-layer metasurface loaded with CVD-grown graphene. We employ an equivalent circuit model to optimize the geometric parameters for the 2 – 3 THz range, accessible by quantum cascade lasers. The incident electric field is confined by the metallic antenna arrays to the narrow resonator gaps, where patches of commercially grown graphene are defined. The graphene conductivity can be continuously tuned by applying a back-gate voltage between the p-doped silicon substrate and the metamaterial on top, separated by a 300 nm SiO2 dielectric layer. By gating the graphene, the transmitted electric field is modulated. The transmission of the device has been studied with terahertz time-domain spectroscopy. Our single-layer solid-state device achieves an intensity modulation depth greater than 68% at 2.2 THz.
Metamaterials have emerged as the basis of a novel optoelectronic platform operating in the terahertz (THz) range, due to their versatility and strong light-matter interaction. The necessary design of efficient modulators and detectors requires a detailed investigation of metamaterial resonances and their interplay with an active medium, e.g. graphene. An aperture-SNOM (a-SNOM) system based on picosecond THz pulses was used to investigate the spectral characteristics of a set of lithographically tuned metamaterial coupled resonators. This approach allowed the mapping of the supported E-field of each resonator a few microns from the device plane, yielding bonding and antibonding modes reminiscent of electromagnetic induced transparency.
Hybrid metamaterial/graphene amplitude and frequency modulators have been implemented as external optoelectronic mirrors in external cavity configurations with terahertz quantum cascade lasers (QCLs). These devices’ tunability is accomplished via the interplay between metamaterial resonant units, normally engineered in mm-size arrays, and graphene. The integration of these devices in external cavity QCLs offers unique emission features and realizes an unprecedented studied regime. The implementation of an external amplitude modulation allows the full switching of laser emission in single mode operation by electrostatically gating graphene. The introduction of more dispersive tunable architectures in frequency modulators yields additionally an all-electronic spectral laser bistability.
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