Article High sensitivity of room-temperature terahertz photodetector based on silicon

Silicon (Si) is the most important semiconductor material broadly used in both electronics and optoelectronics. However, the performance of Si-based room temperature detectors is far below the requirements for direct detection in the terahertz (THz) band, a very promising electromagnetic band for the next-generation technology. Here, we report a high sensitivity of room temperature THz photodetector utilizing the electromagnetic induced well mechanism with an SOI-based structure for easy integration. The detector achieves a responsivity of 122 kV W-1, noise equivalent power ( NEP) of 0.16 pW Hz(-1/2), and a fast response of 1.29 mu s at room temperature. The acquired NEP of the detector is similar to 2 orders lower in magnitude than that of other types of Si-based detectors. Our results pave the way to realize Si-based THz focal plane arrays, which can be used in a wide range of applications, such as medical diagnosis, remote sensing, and security inspection.

Automated summary

In this study, a room temperature THz photodetector utilizing the electromagnetic induced well mechanism with an SOI-based structure was reported. The detector achieved high sensitivity, fast response, and low noise equivalent power, paving the way for the realization of Si-based THz focal plane arrays with wide applications.