A concept for a tunable antenna-coupled intersubband terahertz (TACIT) detector

Detectors based on intersubband transitions in quantum wells have great potential for use between one and several terahertz, We propose a tunable, antenna-coupled, intersubband terahertz (TACIT) detector that is both sensitive and fast, with a speed limited only by the intersubband relaxation rate (Ins at T = 10 K, less than or equal to 10 ps at T = 50 K). The detector is sensitive over a narrow range of frequencies, and the frequency of peak absorption can be tuned by applying a bias voltage to the device. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.