A new security device has proven so proficient at detecting threats and hazardous materials, it might very well do away with the hassles associated with air travel.
The detection device uses terahertz radiation to identify explosives, chemical agents, and dangerous biological substances from safe distances away. This has been a goal for researchers for a while; that is, to create a device that uses terahertz waves for the purpose of imaging. The problem associated with the technology has always been the source of these waves are large, multi-component systems that often require complex vacuum systems, external pump lasers, and cryogenic cooling.
They’re unwieldy to say the least; these systems are also difficult to operate, maintain, and expensive to put into place.
“A single-component solution capable of room temperature and widely tunable operation is highly desirable to enable next generation terahertz systems,” explained Manijeh Razeghi, Walter P. Murphy Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Northwestern University's McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science.
Razeghi and her team have been working on a more compact approach and in a recent paper in Applied Physics Letters , they were able to demonstrate a room temperature, highly tunable, high power terahertz source.
The system is based on nonlinear mixing in quantum cascade lasers. The use of the technology allows it to emit up to 1.9 milliwatts of power and a frequency range covering 1 to 4.6 terahertz. Additionally, this multi-section, sampled-grating distribution feedback and distributed Bragg reflector waveguide has a tuning range of 2.6 to 4.2 terahertz at room temperature.
Immediately speaking, the device can be used for security screening purposes, as well as medical and deep space imaging.
“I am very excited about these results,” Razeghi said. “No one would believe any of this was possible, even a couple years ago.”
Download Razeghi’s full paper, entitled “Widely tunable room temperature semiconductor terahertz source”.
Story via Northwestern University
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