We present the design, fabrication and characterization of a broadband lossless matching layer for silicon lens arrays. The proposed matching layer is based on silicon frusta (truncated pyramids) on top of the lens array fabricated by means of laser ablation. This matching layer is advantageous over quarter-wavelength dielectric matching layers since it covers more than an octave of bandwidth. We compare the performance of this matching layer with the commonly-used parylene-C matching layer at the center of the targetted band (500 GHz) in a lens-antenna integrated system. We measure a 1.6 dB higher transmission of the proposed silicon frusta matching compared to the parylene-C matching layer.

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We present the design, fabrication and characterization of a broadband lossless matching layer for shallow lens arrays. The matching layer we propose is based on silicon pyramids fabricated on top of the lens array by means of laser ablation. This matching layer has the advantage that it covers over an octave of bandwidth. We have compared the performance of this matching layer with the commonly used parylene-C matching layer at the center of the targetted band, 500 GHz. The matching layer based on the silicon pyramids has 1.6 dB higher transmission.@en

A novel transmit lens array is proposed to provide broadband quasi-optical power distribution and beam-steering capabilities for array architectures in future submillimeter-wave heterodyne instruments. The transmit array is composed of a double array layer of lens antenna elements with high aperture efficiency. To enable broadband and low loss quasi-optical (QO) power distribution, the transmit lens array is coupled with a high aperture efficiency single lens antenna. The high aperture efficiency is achieved by using a recently introduced multi-mode leaky wave feed. The top lens array can be used to achieve beam-steering capabilities when fed coherently and mechanically translated using a piezo-motor. In this contribution, we present the development of a prototype based on a transmit lens array of 7 elements at 450-650 GHz with measurements showing a good agreement with simulations. This prototype demonstrates a quasi-optical power coupling efficiency of nearly 60%. Moreover it also shows beam-steering of a 36dBi directivity beam to few discrete angles up to +/-25 degrees with less than 2dB scan loss@en

A focal plane array of extended-hemispherical silicon lenses coupled to aluminum coplanar-waveguide (CPW) Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detectors (MKIDs) has been designed to operate at 7.8 THz. Low-dispersive leaky-wave radiation has been used to efficiently illuminate the antireflection-coated lenses. To minimize the radiation loss from the antenna feeding lines at these high frequencies, the CPWs have been miniaturized and placed on a dielectric membrane. A test device has been fabricated and its experimental characterization in terms of sensitivity, optical coupling, and beam patterns is ongoing.@en

Advances in far infrared astronomy have been, and will be, defined by instrument capabilities. Especially relevant is the development of imaging spectrometers for the wavelength range of 0.03-3 mm, which are not available at all at this moment. We will discuss recent advances in this field: First, we discuss the development of miniature on-chip spectrometers, that can operate in a 0.09-1 THz by using lossless superconducting circuits to create miniature spectrometers. For higher frequencies this is not possible due to material limitations, moreover instruments have to be operated in space due to the opacity of the atmosphere. Recent proposals for new missions focus on space-based observatories with optics cooled down to 4K, which offer unprecedented spectral imaging speeds, but require large arrays of extremely sensitive detectors. In the second part of this paper we will discuss the development of microwave Kinetic Inductance detectors with a sensitivity of NEP. 3.1.10-20 W/ãHz, sufficient for these applications.@en

Integrated superconducting spectrometer (ISS) technology will enable ultra-wideband, integral-field spectroscopy for (sub)millimeter-wave astronomy, in particular, for uncovering the dust-obscured cosmic star formation and galaxy evolution over cosmic time. Here, we present the development of DESHIMA 2.0, an ISS for ultra-wideband spectroscopy toward high-redshift galaxies. DESHIMA 2.0 is designed to observe the 220–440 GHz band in a single shot, corresponding to a redshift range of z = 3.3–7.6 for the ionized carbon emission ([C II] 158 μ m). The first-light experiment of DESHIMA 1.0, using the 332–377 GHz band, has shown an excellent agreement among the on-sky measurements, the laboratory measurements, and the design. As a successor to DESHIMA 1.0, we plan the commissioning and the scientific observation campaign of DESHIMA 2.0 on the ASTE 10-m telescope in 2023. Ongoing upgrades for the full octave-bandwidth system include the wideband 347-channel chip design and the wideband quasi-optical system. For efficient measurements, we also develop the observation strategy using the mechanical fast sky-position chopper and the sky-noise removal technique based on a novel data-scientific approach. In the paper, we show the recent status of the upgrades and the plans for the scientific observation campaign.

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Photoconductive antennas are devices that provide power up to THz frequencies at a relatively low cost. However, the power radiated by each antenna is typically quite low and arrays have been proposed to increase it. In this paper we present the design of a leaky enhanced array architecture that surpasses the state of the art as it operates efficiently for frequencies up to 1THz, without excessive complications in the manufacturing. This architecture is compared with a ‘standard’ array, showing a broader bandwidth and a higher emitted detected signal.@en

The time evolution of voltages and currents in a pulsed photo conductive antenna (PCA) source is evaluated resorting to a rigorous procedure that stems from semiconductor physics first, to define the phenomena involved in the generation of the photocurrent, and then relies on an equivalent circuit in time domain, providing a direct estimation of the power generated by the PCA as well as its spectral distribution. The circuit model is validated via a campaign of measurements of standard PC antenna sources. The saturation phenomena in the THz radiated power occurring at large optical excitation levels, previously observed by the scientific community and associated to different phenomena, are accurately predicted by the present method, which ascribe their main cause to the feedback from the antenna: indeed, the electromagnetic field generated by the device tend to reduce the strength of the forcing field used to accelerate the photo-carriers.

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This paper describes the microfabrication and electrical characterization of aluminum-coated superconducting through-silicon vias (TSVs) with sharp superconducting transition above 1 K. The sharp superconducting transition was achieved by means of fully conformal and void-free DC-sputtering of the TSVs with Al, and is here demonstrated in up to 500μ m-deep vias. Full conformality of Al sputtering was made possible by shaping the vias with a tailored hourglass profile, which allowed a metallic layer as thick as 430 nm to be deposited in the center of the vias. Single-via electric resistance as low as 160 mΩ at room temperature and superconductivity at 1.27 K were measured by a three-dimensional (3D) cross-bridge Kelvin resistor structure. This work establishes a CMOS-compatible fabrication process suitable for arrays of superconducting TSVs and 3D integration of superconducting silicon-based devices. [2020-0354].

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Recently, we have experimentally demonstrated the generation of mW average power, in the 100-600GHz bandwidth, by photoconductive sources using a connected array of dipoles coherently fed via a free-standing micro-lens array. In this contribution, we extend these sources to a much wider bandwidth reaching 5THz, without compromising the radiated power, by resorting to a tight array periodicity of 15Ϝm between the array elements and the use of an integrated 3D-printed micro-lens array to focus the laser power.

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We describe a microfabrication process that, thanks to a specifically tailored sidewall profile, enables for the first-time wafer-scale arrays of high-aspect ratio through-silicon vias (TSVs) coated with DC-sputtered Aluminum, achieving at once superconducting and CMOS-compatible 3D interconnects. Void-free conformal coating of up to 500μm-deep and 50μm-wide vias with a mere 2μm-thick layer of Al, a widely available metal in for IC manufacturing, was demonstrated. Single-via electric resistance as low as 468 mΩ at room temperature and superconductivity at 1.25 K were measured by a cross-bridge Kelvin resistor structure. This work establishes the fabrication of functional superconducting interposers suitable for 3D integration of high-density silicon-based quantum computing architectures.

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This paper presents the fabrication and electrical characterization of superconducting high-aspect ratio through-silicon vias DC-sputtered with aluminum. Fully conformal and void-free coating of 300 μm-deep and 50 μmwide vias with Al, a CMOS-compatible and widely available superconductor, was made possible by tailoring a funneled sidewall profile for the axisymmetric vias. Single-via electric resistance as low as 80.44 mΩ at room temperature and superconductivity below 1.28 K were measured by a crossbridge Kelvin resistor structure. This work thus demonstrates the fabrication of functional superconducting interposer layers, suitable for high-density 3D integration of silicon-based quantum computing architectures.@en

For space observatories, the glitches caused by high energy phonons created by the interaction of cosmic ray particles with a detector substrate lead to dead time during observation. Mitigating the impact of cosmic rays is therefore an important requirement for detectors to be used in future space missions. In order to investigate possible solutions, we carry out a systematic study by testing four large arrays of Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detectors (MKIDs), each consisting of ∼960 pixels and fabricated on monolithic 55 mm × 55 mm × 0.35 mm Si substrates. We compare the response to cosmic ray interactions in our laboratory for different detector arrays: A standard array with only the MKID array as reference, an array with a low T_c superconducting film as a phonon absorber on the opposite side of the substrate, and arrays with MKIDs on membranes. The idea is that the low T_c layer down converts the phonon energy to values below the pair breaking threshold of the MKIDs, and the membranes isolate the sensitive part of the MKIDs from phonons created in the substrate. We find that the dead time can be reduced up to a factor of 40 when compared to the reference array. Simulations show that the dead time can be reduced to below 1% for the tested detector arrays when operated in a spacecraft in an L2 or a similar far-Earth orbit. The technique described here is also applicable and important for large superconducting qubit arrays for future quantum computers.

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There is an increasing demand for large format detector arrays with large bandwidths and high antenna efficiencies for future THz astronomical radiometric applications. For direct detection instruments, it is also desired to have antennas with dual polarization reception in order to increase the received power from incoherent sources, thereby improving the observing speed of the instrument. The main goal of this work is the validation of the incoherent detection of two orthogonal polarizations by a leaky lens antenna, coupled to a single Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detector (MKID). Depending on the absorbed power over a distributed transmission line, the resonant frequency of the MKID changes. The proposed antenna is composed of two crossed leaky wave slots feeding a silicon extended hemispherical lens. The slots are coupled to four aluminum (Al) coplanar waveguide (CPW) lines that incoherently absorb the incoming THz radiation. The antenna and the power absorbing CPW lines are embedded inside the MKID, allowing an efficient radiation detection at THz frequencies where no lossless superconductors are available. The proposed dual-polarized device absorbs power incrementally over four different CPWs incoherently and is therefore simulated in reception (deriving a plane-wave response) similarly to what is done in distributed absorbers. We compare numerically and experimentally the proposed dual-polarized leaky lens coupled MKID and its single polarization counterpart and show that the dual polarized device receives twice as much power as the single-polarized one. Eventually, the dual-polarized device, when used with air-bridges, provides the same angular selectivity and twice the throughput of the single-polarized one.@en

Astronomical observations at infrared, sub-millimetre, and millimetre wavelengths are essential for addressing many of the key questions in astrophysics. Future ground- and space based observatories need large detector arrays with a sensitivity limited only by the noise of the radiation background. We demonstrate that antenna coupled Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detectors allow us to create kpixel large arrays with background limited sensitivity over the entire FIR/mmwavelength range. We discuss in detail the readout system and experimental results of a 961 pixel array, optimised for 850 GHz radiation that is read out with a single readout chain.@en

This contribution presents the design and sub-mm wave measurements of a wideband dual polarized leaky lens antenna coupled to kinetic inductance detector (KIDs) to be specifically used for tightly spaced focal plane arrays. The antenna is planar and composed by two crossed slots, fed by two orthogonal coplanar waveguide (CPW) lines. In transmission, the crossed CPW lines are fed differentially in order to couple the radiation into the slots. The slot antenna feeds a dielectric lens to achieve directive patterns. The main goal of this work is to show the measurement results of the patterns and efficiency, and compare this antenna with its singly polarized version. The measured received power from an incoherent source is increased by a factor of 2 compared to a single-polarized version of the antenna.

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We present the design, fabrication, and full characterisation (sensitivity, beam pattern, and frequency response) of a background limited broadband antenna coupled kinetic inductance detector covering the frequency range from 1.4 to 2.8 THz. This device shows photon noise limited performance with a noise equivalent power of 2.5 × 10^-19W/Hz^1/2 at 1.55 THz and can be easily scaled to a kilo-pixel array. The measured optical efficiency, beam pattern, and antenna frequency response match very well the simulations.

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Microwave kinetic inductance detectors (MKIDs) promise high sensitivity, combined with device simplicity and intrinsic multiplexibility. We demonstrate in this paper the realization of an imaging system consisting of an array of 961 antenna-coupled MKIDs that is read out using a single pair of coax cables and an analogue-digital back-end with a 2 GHz readout bandwidth. We measure the optical NEP of the central pixels of the array and find NEP = 510 -19 w/Vhz. The electrical NEP is measured for all pixels, giving NEP = 3.3 ± 1.310 -19 W/VHz for 85% of the pixels. We further obtain an instantaneous dynamic range of a factor 1000 and a cosmic ray dead time of 0.5% in the lab, resulting in 25% dead time when operated in a spacecraft at L2.@en

We present the development of background limited kinetic inductance detectors (KIDs) for THz astronomy applications to be used in space based observatories. The THz radiation is coupled to the KID via a leaky wave antenna covering the frequency range from 1.4 to 2.8 THz. We have developed a hybrid niobium titanium nitride/aluminium (NbTiN/Al) KID, fabricated on a silicon (Si) substrate, in which the leaky wave antenna and absorbing section of the KID are fabricated on a suspended silicon nitride (SiN) membrane. The radiation is coupled to the leaky wave antenna with a Si lens placed on top of it at a distance of 3μm. We observe photon noise limited performance both in the phase and amplitude readout simultaneously. Both the optical efficiency and the antenna beam patterns have been measured with excellent agreement with the simulations, and the measured FTS shows a large frequency range (over an octave), only limited by the optical filters placed in the setup.@en

Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detectors (MKIDs) are becoming a very promising candidate for next generation imaging instruments for the far infrared. A MKID consists of a superconducting resonator coupled to a feed-line used for the readout. In the devices presented here radiation coupling is achieved by coupling the MKID directly to planar antenna. The antenna is placed in the focus of an elliptical lens to increase the filling factor and to match efficiently to fore-optics. In this paper we present the design and the optical performance of MKIDs optimized for operation at 350 GHz. We have measured a device consisting of 14 pixels, characterized the coupling efficiency, antenna-lens frequency response and beam pattern and compared these to theoretical simulations. The optical efficiency has been measured by means of a black body radiator mounted in an ADR cryostat, through the variation of the black body temperature a variable illumination of each pixel (from 0.1 fW to 2 pW) is achieved. The frequency response and beam pattern have been directly measured in a He3 cryostat directly via the cryostat window and without the use of intermediate optics.@en