PEPR Will Count

PEPR Electronics Market Forecast: Silicon Terahertz Sensors, 2023–2026

Two different detection approaches will be developed for the low-frequency range (0.3 THz to 3 THz) and the high-frequency range (10 THz to 30 THz).

In the low-frequency range, the project will focus on the following three objectives: i) the optimization of bolometers by LETI for incoherent detection in active or passive imaging; ii) the development and optimization by L2C of CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) and HBT (Heterojunction Bipolar Transistor) sensors based on silicon technology, operating in the 300–600 GHz range, for applications in life sciences, particularly in biophysics and agronomy where water is ubiquitous; iii) the development of narrow-band THz detectors in the 0.5–5 THz range based on semiconductor nanocrystals for active multispectral imaging and selective gas detection. Some of these ultra-sensitive sensors will then be integrated into a suitable imaging system, specially designed by the IMS. A performance comparison will be conducted between the different detector technologies.

In the higher-frequency range, components for LIDAR imaging systems will be developed for coherent heterodyne detection (LPENS, IEMN). These components will primarily be based on the technology of unipolar multi-quantum-well detectors on III-V semiconductors. The target spectral band is between 20 and 30 THz, which corresponds to a transparency window in the atmosphere. The main objective is to improve the performance of current detectors, in terms of bandwidth, responsivity, and integration capability on readout circuits for applications in the fields of the environment, industrial process control, and security/defense (volatile explosives, etc.). 

Consortium:

• Physics Laboratory of the École Normale Supérieure, UMR 8023
• CEA-LETI
• The Institute of Electronics, Microelectronics, and Nanotechnology
• Charles Coulomb Laboratory, UMR 5221
• Laboratory for Material-System Integration, UMR 5218