Pulsed free space two-port photonic vector network analyzer with up to 2 THz bandwidth

We demonstrate a free space two-port photonic vector network analyzer capable of measuring the scattering parameters of devices and materials in the terahertz range with a frequency coverage of 0.2 - 2 THz in a single system. It is based on photoconductive terahertz sources and detectors driven by a telecom-wavelength femtosecond laser. Being able to cover a bandwidth of one order of magnitude, the system is capable of performing S-parameter measurements deep into the terahertz range, beyond frequencies reachable by their electronic counterparts. We demonstrate high performance at three application examples, namely S-parameter measurements of a split ring resonator array and a distributed Bragg reflector, as well as material parameter extraction of several materials. (C) 2021 Optical Society of America under the terms of the OSA Open Access Publishing Agreement

Automated summary

The free space two-port photonic vector network analyzer can perform scattering parameter measurements in the terahertz range and has demonstrated high performance in various applications.