Compact & Ultra-High Resolution Terahertz Spectroscopic/Fingerprint System

NP Photonics proposes to develop a fiber-based, compact, tunable, THz spectroscopic/fingerprinting system that offers ultra-high resolution (< 1 MHz), high sensitivity and room temperature operation over the 1-3 THz range. This proposed system will provide high resolution molecular fingerprint information by leveraging NP Photonics high power and narrow linewidth fiber-based THz source, which is based on the newly developed THz crystal fiber converter and NP’s high power single-frequency pulsed fiber lasers at eye-safe wavelength ~1550 nm in master oscillator and power amplifier (MOPA) configuration. In this project, the external cavity enhanced fiber-based THz source will generate 1-10 mW narrow linewidth THz radiation while providing for 3-4 decades of dynamic range. For the THz detection, we propose an ultra-sensitive, room-temperature optical THz detection by using nonlinear parametric up-conversion. Terahertz radiation is mixed with pump light at ~1550 nm in the THz fiber converter to generate an optical up-converted wave that is coupled into optical fiber and detected using a Geiger-mode avalanche photo-diode (GM-APD). The noise equivalent power (NEP) of this proposed THz spectroscopic/fingerprinting system is expected to be ~ fW/Hz1/2.