A room-temperature terahertz (THz) detector based on a thermoelectric frequency selective surface (FSS) has been numerically simulated, designed, fabricated, and tested. The FSS has been fabricated from a 150 nm thin Bi₈₈Sb₁₂ thermoelectric film with the engraved periodic Greek crosses. The detector prototype has been tested under the 0.14 THz radiation exposure and showed a voltage response due to the photo-thermoelectric effect up to 0.13–0.18 mV, and voltage responsivity equal to 14–20 mV/W. The detector based on the FSS has shown voltage responsivity up to three times higher in comparison with the detector based on the continuous film. Thermal imaging has shown a temperature increase in the FSS up to 1.5 K under the THz exposure. The obtained results demonstrate prospects for utilization of the Bi₈₈Sb₁₂ FSS detector as a low cost, compact, high-speed, highly sensitive room-temperature THz detector.

We report results of galvanomagnetic and terahertz time-domain spectroscopy measurements on thin films of Bi ${}_{1-x}$ Sb ${}_x$ on polyimide and mica substrates with various antimony concentrations (x from 0 to 15 %) and film thickness (70, 150 nm). The resistivity, Hall coefficient and magnetoresistivity of the films were measured experimentally in the magnetic field of 0.65 T at room temperature. Mobility and concentration of electrons and holes in the film plane were calculated using the transport coefficients. The terahertz time-domain spectroscopy is used to measure the complex conductivity and permittivity of Bi ${}_{1-x}$ Sb ${}_x$ thin films on the dielectric substrates in the frequency range from 0.2 to 1 THz. The plasma frequency, relaxation time, DC conductivity and effective carrier mass were extracted from these data and evaluated as functions of the Sb concentration for different film thickness and substrate. We observed that the film magnetoresistivity decreases with increasing the Sb concentration and for most of the films the Hall coefficient is negative and depends on the external factors insignificantly. We show that the mobility of charge carriers weakly depends on Sb concentration, which confirms the assertion about the scattering of carriers on themselves and not on defects in the structure. It was revealed that film static and dynamic resistivity (conductivity) as well as dielectric permittivity depend on Sb content and the film thickness. The results may be used for development of various thermoelectric, electronic and optical devices, such as THz detectors or components which can control the properties of THz radiation.

A terahertz (THz) detector based on thermoelectric thin films was simulated using the finite elements method. The thermoelectric circuit consisted of $Sb$ and $B{i}_{88}S{b}_{12}$ 150-nm films on the mica substrate. $Sb$ , $B{i}_{88}S{b}_{12}$ , and mica-substrate properties have been measured experimentally in the THz frequency range. The model of electromagnetic heating was used in order to estimate possible heating of $Sb$ - $B{i}_{88}S{b}_{12}$ contact. THz radiation power varied from 1 $\mathsf{\mu }$ W to 50 mW, and frequency varied in the range from 0.3 to 0.5 THz. The calculations showed a temperature difference of up to 1 K, voltage up to 0.1 mV, and responsivity of several mVW ${}^{-1}$ . The results show that thin $Sb$ and $Bi-Sb$ thermoelectric films can be used for THz radiation detection at room temperatures.

Negative group delay may be observed in dispersive media with anomalous dispersion in a certain frequency range. The fact that an outgoing wave packet precedes an incoming one does not violate the causality principle but is only a consequence of a waveform reshaping. This effect is observed in media such as photonic crystals, hyperbolic and epsilon-near-zero metamaterials, undersized waveguides, subwavelength apertures, side-by-side prisms, and resonant circuits at various frequencies. The current work is devoted to the design of a simple negative-group-delay medium with tunable properties in the THz frequency range. This medium consists of a bismuth-based frequency-selective surface on a dielectric substrate and may be tuned both statically and dynamically. While a geometry variation defines a main form of an effective permittivity dispersion and group delay/group velocity spectra, an external voltage allows one to adjust them with high precision. For the configuration proposed in this work, all frequency regions with noticeable change in group delay/group velocity lie within atmospheric transparency windows, which are to be used in 6G communications. This medium may be applied to THz photonics for a tunable phase-shift compensation, dispersion management in systems of THz signal modulation, and for encoding in next-generation wireless communication systems.

The terahertz frequency range is promising for solving various practically important problems. However, for the terahertz technology development, there is still a problem with the lack of affordable and effective terahertz devices. One of the main tasks is to search for new materials with high sensitivity to terahertz radiation at room temperature. Bi_1−xSb_x thin films with various Sb concentrations seem to be suitable for such conditions. In this paper, the terahertz radiation influence onto the properties of thermoelectric Bi_1−xSb_x 200 nm films was investigated for the first time. The films were obtained by means of thermal evaporation in vacuum. They were affected by terahertz radiation at the frequency of 0.14 terahertz (THz) in the presence of thermal gradient, electric field or without these influences. The temporal dependencies of photoconductivity, temperature difference and voltage drop were measured. The obtained data demonstrate the possibility for practical use of Bi_1−xSb_x thin films for THz radiation detection. The results of our work promote the usage of these thermoelectric materials, as well as THz radiation detectors based on them, in various areas of modern THz photonics.

A terahertz (THz) room-temperature photo-thermoelectric (PTE) detector based on elements of spiral shape has been proposed. The units have been fabricated on a 20 μm mica substrate from 150 nm thin films of Bi88Sb12 and copper by a thermal deposition technique. Thermoelectric Bi88Sb12 leg acted as a sensitive element due to its high absorption and spiral shape that enable heating. It also acts as a radiator to maintain a temperature difference and a thermo-electromotive force formation. A prototype of a PTE detector has been designed, fabricated, and tested at the 0.14 THz radiation frequency. Measurements showed a voltage signal of 275 μV from 1 unit, the responsivity of 50.7 mV/W. It showed a noise equivalent power of 158 nW Hz−1/2, which is 1–2 orders of magnitude higher than for bolometers and Golay cells, but is comparable with pyroelectric detectors. The response time was 2.21 s and 1.75 s according to the experiment and the simulation, respectively, which is a bit better than for pyroelectric detectors. Based on numerical simulation an improved detector design has been proposed allowing the voltage up to 800 μV from 1 unit. The proposed PTE detector possesses several significant advantages resulting from the usage of Bi88Sb12 and comprehensive design. The fabrication process is fast, low-cost, and CMOS-compatible. The design is compact and simple and requires only two materials that simultaneously act as an absorber, thermocouple, electrical contacts, and radiator. The detector operates at room temperature and can be applied in 6 G communication systems, imaging and medical diagnostics.