A dual-polarization InSb receiver for 461/492 GHz

A dual-polarization InSb hot-electron bolometer-mixer receiver has been built for the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope, for operation at 461 and 492 GHz (the frequencies of theJ=43 rotational transition of CO and of the³ P ₁³ P ₀ transition of neutral carbon). Receiver noise temperatures of 500K have been obtained at 461 GHz, in observing bandwidths of 3 MHz. The receiver was designed as a common-user or facility instrument. Here we describe those aspects of the design and construction which enabled this goal to be realized.     

230 and 492 GHz low noise sis waveguide receivers employing tuned Nb/AlOx/Nb tunnel junctions

We report results on two full height waveguide receivers that cover the 200–290 GHz and 380–510 GHz atmospheric windows. The receivers are part of the facility instrumentation at the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory on Mauna Kea in Hawaii. We have measured receiver noise temperatures in the range of 20K–35K DSB in the 200–290 GHz band, and 65–90K DSB in the 390–510 GHz atmospheric band. In both instances low mixer noise temperatures and very high quantum efficiency have been achieved. Conversion gain (3 dB) is possible with the 230 GHz receiver, however lowest noise and most stable operation is achieved with unity conversion gain.A 40% operating bandwidth is achieved by using a RF compensated junction mounted in a two-tuner full height waveguide mixer block. The tuned Nb/AlO _x /Nb tunnel junctions incorporate an end-loaded tuning stub with two quarter-wave transformer sections to tune out the large junction capacitance. Both 230 and 492 GHz SIS junctions are 0.49µm² in size and have current densities of 8 and 10 kA/cm² respectively.Fourier Transform Spectrometer (FTS) measurements of the 230 and 492 GHz tuned junctions show good agreement with the measured heterodyne waveguide response.     

A lownoise 665 GHz SIS quasi-particle waveguide receiver

We report recent results on a 565–690 GHz SIS heterodyne receiver employing a 0.36µm² Nb/AlO _x /Nb SIS tunnel junction with high quality circular non-contacting backshort and E-plane tuners in a full height waveguide mount. No resonant tuning structures have been incorporated in the junction design at this time, even though such structures are expected to help the performance of the receiver. The receiver operates to at least the gap frequency of Niobium, 680 GHz. Typical receiver noise temperatures from 565–690 GHz range from 160K to 230K with a best value of 185K DSB at 648 GHz. With the mixer cooled from 4.3K to 2K the measured receiver noise temperatures decreased by approximately 15%, giving roughly 180K DSB from 660 to 680 GHz. The receiver has a full 1 GHz IF passband and has been successfully installed at the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory in Hawaii.     

Tens of GHz Tantalum pentoxide‐based micro‐ring all‐optical modulator for Si photonics

A tantalum pentoxide‐based (Ta₂O₅‐based) micro‐ring all‐optical modulator was fabricated. The refractive index inside the micro‐ring cavity was modified using the Kerr effect by injecting a pumped pulse. The transmittance of the ring resonator was controlled to achieve all‐optical modulation at the wavelength of the injected probe. When 12 GHz pulses with a peak power of 1.2 W were coupled in the ring cavity, the transmission spectrum of the Ta₂O₅ resonator was red‐shifted by 0.04 nm because of the Kerr effect. The relationship between the modulation depth and gap of the Ta₂O₅ directional coupler is discussed. An optimized gap of 1100 nm was obtained, and a maximum buildup factor of 11.7 with 84% modulation depth was achieved. The nonlinear refractive index of Ta₂O₅ at 1.55 μm was estimated as 3.4 × 10^?14 cm²/W based on the Kerr effect, which is almost an order of magnitude higher than that of Si₃N₄. All results indicate that Ta₂O₅ has potential for use in nonlinear waveguide applications with modulation speeds as high as tens of GHz.

     

Pressure broadening coefficients of the water vapor lines at 556.936 and 752.033 GHz

The air induced broadening coefficients of the pure rotational transitions of H₂O at 556.936 GHz (1₁₀←1₀₁), and 752.033 GHz (2₁₁←2₀₂) were measured by terahertz time-domain spectroscopy. The air broadening coefficient was determined to be for the 556.936 GHz line and for the 752.033 GHz line, respectively. The present broadening coefficients for the 556.936 GHz water line are significantly smaller than those of Markov and Krupnov [Measurements of the pressure shift of the 1(10)-1(01) water line at 556.936 GHz produced by mixtures of gases. J Mol Spect 1995:172;211-4] but relatively close to the values of the HITRAN database. The measured data may improve the accuracy of the abundance of water vapor retrieved from spectra obtained by the Odin/SMR satellite instrument. The effect on the satellite retrieval processing is discussed.     

Effect of an applied magnetic field on the performance of a sis receiver near 300 GHz

We have successfully constructed and tested a superconductor-insulator-superconductor (SIS) receiver for operation at 265–280 GHz using 1 m² area Nb–AlO _x –Nb tunnel junctions fabricated at Stony Brook. The best performance to date is a double sideband (DSB) receiver noise temperature of 129 K at 278 GHz. We find that suppression of the Josephson pair currents with a magnetic field is essential for good performance and a stable DC bias point. Fields as high as 280 gauss have been used with no degradation of mixing performance. We illustrate the improvement in the intermediate frequency (IF) output stability with progressively increasing magnetic fields.     

Simultaneous phase-lock of five CO2 lasers to a primary Cs frequency standard

The output of a CO₂ laser, operating on theP _I(18) transition of¹³C¹⁶O₂ at 26941 GHz (11.128 m) was phase-locked to a 5 MHz signal from a primary Cs frequency standard by means of a frequency chain having only CO₂ lasers as infrared sources. Simultaneously, four other CO₂ lasers in the chain were phase-locked to the 26941 GHz output. This provided CO₂ laser frequencies at 26 450 305, 26 940 815, 28 694 625, 29 442 480, and 33 185 715 MHz having zero long-term-average frequency error relative to the Cs standard, and the ±10^–13 (3 Hz) long-term absolute uncertainty of the standard.     

A superconducting tunnel junction receiver for 345 GHz

In this paper we discuss the design, fabrication, and testing of a quasiparticle tunnel junction receiver for use at 345 GHz. The design employs small area Nb/Nb-oxide/PbInAu edge junctions in order to keep the device capacitance small and maintain a modest value for R_NC. For optimura noise performance and beam properties the mixer is contained in a waveguide mounting structure. Our best sensitivity was obtained at 312 GHz where we measured a double sideband (DSB) noise temperature of 275 K. Noise temperatures of 400 K (DSB) or better were obtained out to 350 GHz.     

A Low-Noise 230 GHz SIS Receiver for Radio Astronomy Employing Untuned Nb/AlOx/Nb Tunnel Junctions

A heterodyne receiver based on a 1/3 reduced height rectangular waveguide SIS mixer with two mechanical tuners has been built for astronomical observations of molecular transitions in the 230 GHz frequency band. The mixer used an untuned array (R_nC_j3, R_n70 ) of four Nb/AIOx/Nb tunnel junctions in series as a nonlinear mixing element. A reasonable balance between the input and output coupling efficiencies has been obtained by choosing the junction number N=4. The receiver exhibits DSB (Double Side Band) noise temperature around 50 K over a frequency range of more than 10 GHz centered at 230 GHz. The lowest system noise temperature of 38 K has been recorded at 232.5 GHz. Mainly by adjusting the subwaveguide backshort, the SSB (Single Side Band) operation with image rejection of 15 dB is obtained with the noise temperature as low as 50 K. In addition, the noise contribution from each receiver component has been studied further. The minimum SIS mixer noise temperature is estimated as 15 K, pretty close to the quantum limit v/k11 K at 230 GHz. It is believed that the receiver noise temperatures presented are the lowest yet reported for a 230 GHz receiver using untuned junctions.     

The rotational gas-phase spectrum of trans- and cis-HSSOH at 100 GHz

We present the first pure rotational spectra of the two most stable conformers of oxatrisulfane, trans- and cis-HSSOH, in their vibrational ground state. For both conformers a-, b-, and c-type transitions have been recorded in the range from 75 to 120 GHz using an all solid-state spectrometer. More than 200 lines have been assigned for each conformer, most of them belonging to the ^rQ₂- and the ^rQ₃-branch of the perpendicular spectra. The least-squares fit analysis using a semirigid rotor Hamiltonian in S-reduction yields precise values for the ground-state rotational constants for cis-HSSOH, and for trans-HSSOH as well as centrifugal distortion parameters of quartic and sextic order. The ratio of the permanent dipole moment components μ_b/μ_c=0.29(3) for cis-HSSOH and μ_b/μ_c=0.99(3) for trans-HSSOH has been derived from measured line intensities. All experimentally derived molecular parameters are in very good agreement with high-level quantum-chemical calculations using coupled-cluster techniques, thus confirming the current understanding of the structure of oxasulfanes.     

Millimeter and submillimeter detection using Ga1?xAlxAs/GaAs heterostructures

We have shown that a Ga_1–xAl_xAs/GaAs heterostructure can be used as a sensitive tunable detector of mm-wave/sub-mm-wave radiation. The mechanism for detection requires the application of a magnetic field varying from approximately 0.2T at 94GHz (3.2mm wavelength) to 6.2T at 2500GHz (119m wavelength). The responsivity and N.E.P. at 3.2mm have been roughly estimated at 200V/W and 5×10^–11W/Hz respectively. The speed of such a detector could be several orders of magnitude greater than comparable InSb detectors.     

Wide band (2.5 GHz) infrared heterodyne spectrometer

Conclusion A double beam heterodyne spectrometer with 2.5 GHz bandwidth was built in Reims. The receiver's bandwidth was measured by heterodyning radiation from a CO₂ laser with the radiation from a tunable diode laser. The spectrometer was used for laboratory studies. Ammonia absorption spectra were recorded. Line positions in agreement with other works were measured.This apparatus will soon be used for atmospheric ozone studies in association with an isotopic¹²C¹⁸O₂ laser to avoid atmospheric CO₂ absorption.     

Generation of picosecond pulses in solid-state lasers using new active media

Results are reported of investigations aimed at generating nanosecond radiation pulses in solid-state lasers using new active media having broad gain lines. Passive mode locking is accomplished for the first time in a BeLa:Nd³⁺ laser at a wavelength 1.354 m, and in a YAG:Nd³⁺ laser on a 1.32–m transition. The free lasing and mode-locking regimes were investigated in an alexandrite (BeAl²O₄:Cr³⁺) laser in the 0.72–0.78–m range and in a synchronously pumped laser on F 2- centers in LiF in the 1.12–1.24–m region. The features of nonlinear perception of IR radiation by the eye, using a developed picosecond laser on F₂ ^– centers, are investigated for the first time.Translated from Lazernye Sistemy, pp. 67–86, 1982.     

The C hyperfine constants of HCS and HSC studied by microwave spectroscopy

The ¹³C hyperfine constants of the H¹³CS and HS¹³C radicals are determined by microwave spectroscopy. For H¹³CS, the 1₀₁-0₀₀ rotational transition is measured at 38.5 GHz with a Fourier transform microwave spectrometer, and two ¹³C hyperfine constants are determined. They are well interpreted in terms of a relatively large HCS bonding angle (132.8°). For HS¹³C, the N=7-6, 9-8, and 10-9 rotational transitions are measured in the 268-384 GHz region by using a source modulation spectrometer combined with a free-space discharge cell, and five ¹³C hyperfine constants including the nuclear spin-rotation constant, C_aa, are determined. From the ¹³C hyperfine constants, the p character of the unpaired electron orbital on the carbon atom is estimated to be 66.5%, supporting a classical resonance picture; .     

TE03 to TE01 mode converters for use with a 150 GHz gyrotron

Two-step high-power TE03-to-TE01 mode transducers (TE02 is the intermediate mode) were designed to transform the TE03 output mode of the 150 GHz KfK gyrotron into the fundamental circular symmetric TE01 mode for low-loss propagation and further conversion into the linearly polarized quasioptical HE11 mode. The advanced perturbation structures of the ruppled-wall mode converters (with input- and output-diameter D=27.8 mm) were optimized by numerically solving the proper coupled-wave differential equations. The overall TE03-to-TE01 conversion efficiency at 150 GHz was calculated to be ₀=99.1% for a long converter (total length L=2.67 m) and ₀=97.8% for a short converter (L=1.07 m); ohmic attenuation is included. The corresponding theoretical bandwidth (for 95%) is ±1.4 GHz and ±2 GHz, respectively. Low-power experimental data are in excellent agreement with these computed values.     

Resonant generation of even-order harmonics in metal vapors

Generation of the second- and fourth-order harmonics of laser radiation is reported in Mg vapor at the forbidden 3s ²¹ S _o–4s ¹ S _o transition. The conversion efficiency for the second-order harmonics has been measured to be 10^–2% and for the fourth one 10^–8%.     

Fourier-transform microwave and submillimeter-wave spectroscopy of chloroiodomethane, CH2ICl

Guided by a previous microwave study (9–35 GHz), the rotational spectrum of both chlorine isotopologues of chloroiodomethane in its vibrational and electronic ground state has been re-investigated in the microwave region and extended to the millimeter/submillimeter-wave region. Weak a-type transitions have been recorded by Fourier transform microwave spectroscopy below 20 GHz whilst strong b-type rotational transitions have been recorded between 15 and 646 GHz, corresponding to energy levels with J″ ≤ 108 and . Molecular constants including those describing the hyperfine structures owing to the two halogen atoms were accurately determined for both species from the least-squares analysis of a total of 1475 distinct transition frequencies (of which 906 belong to the CH₂I³⁵Cl isotopologue). The two sets of rotational constants allowed us to derive an r₀ structure of CH₂ICl.     

Pressure Broadening of the Rotational Line of Oxygen at 425 GHz

The pressure broadening of the ¹⁶O¹⁶O rotational line (N, J)=(3, 2)-(1, 2) at 425 GHz by oxygen and nitrogen perturbers at room temperatures have been reported. A spectrometer with BWO and acoustic detector was employed with a double magnetically shielded cell. The signal-to-noise ratio on the line was about 200-250 for self-broadening and about 100 for broadening by N₂ measurements. The pressure-broadening parameters of the line at room temperature (23±0.5°C) were measured as 2.19±0.01 MHz/Torr for self-broadening and 2.215±0.02 MHz/Torr for broadening by nitrogen. Values of these parameters significantly (by about 25%) differ from ones previously measured by H. M. Pickett, E. A. Cohen, and D. E. Brinza, (Astrophys. J.248, L49-L51 (1981)). The results of the present work show the necessity for correction of broadening parameters of this line for the purpose of Earth atmosphere remote sensing. The central frequency of the transition (N, J)=(3, 2)-(1, 2) was measured as 424 763.023±0.020 MHz.     

A comparative MRD-CI study of the electronic spectrum of linear and cyclic C8 clusters

Multi-reference configuration interaction MRD-CI calculations are performed to compute the vertical electronic spectrum of linear and cyclic C₈⁺ clusters. The electronic spectrum of the linear C₈⁺ isomer is dominated by the transition computed at 5.45 eV. The first dipole-allowed transition of linear C₈⁺ () is calculated at 1.69 eV, whereas several transitions are calculated with medium oscillator strengths between 2.30 and 5.14 eV. For the cyclic C₈⁺ form we computed important transitions at 1.83 and 4.20 eV. In addition, the first dipole-allowed transition of cyclic isomer is computed at 0.77 eV (). This transition should help to identify the cyclic C₈⁺ species since there are no dipole-allowed transitions of the linear isomer in this energy region.     

High-precision laser spectroscopy of antiprotonic helium atomcules and effects of collisions at high-density conditions

We have performed laser spectroscpy of metastable antiprotonic helium atoms (or “atomcules”) ( He⁺) and have observed a density dependence of the resonance vacuum wavelengths for the known transitions (n,l)=(39,35)→(38,34) and (37,34)→(36,33). They showed linear red-shifts of 0.61±0.01 GHz and 0.22±0.02 GHz per 1 g℞, respectively. With the shift parameters above, the transition vacuum wavelengths were extrapolated to zero-density limits, yielding λ₀ = 597.2570± 0.0003 nm and λ₀ = 470.7220±0.0006 nm, respectively. These values were compared with the result of recent theoretical calculations on the energy of the Coulombic three-body system, including relativistic corrections and the Lamb shift. The agreements between our experimental values and the calculations have become as good as 2×10^-6. This sets a severe constraint on the antiproton charge ( ) and mass ( ) with |Q _p - |/e < 5 × 10^-7 and |M _p - |/M _p < 5 × 10^-7, under a more precisely known constraint on the charge-to-mass ratio. Thus we have opened a new possibility of measuring fundamental constants of the antiproton. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.