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International Journal of Infrared and Millimeter Waves

Submm heterodyne mixing using NbCN/Nb sis tunnel junctions

Herman van de Stadt, J. Mees, Z. H. Barber, Mark G. Blamire, Pieter Dieleman, Th. de Graauw

Published Jan 1, 1996• 6 citations
Publisher
DOI
10.1007/bf02088185

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In this thesis the design and analysis of SIS-mixers (SIS: superconductor-isolator-superconductor) for the use as low-noise and broad-band detectors in the submm-region for astronomical observations is described. The SIS-mixers have been developed for the frequency band 2 (636-802 GHz) of the Heterodyne Instrument for the Far Infrared (HIFI) on ESA’s space-observatory Herschel. The required performance baseline has been defined by the HIFI-consortium in terms of the estimated noise temperature contribution of the mixer to be 110 K at 636 GHz and 150 K at 802 GHz. In the frequency region between 80 GHz and 900 GHz Heterodyne SIS mixers are established as the best devices for low noise mixing with a high spectral resolution (mixing of the signal radiation with local oscillator, LO). For the HIFI band 2 mixers, the technology of Nb/Al-Al2O3/Nb-junctions has been used with junction areas of 0.5-1.0 um2, a target value for the current density jc of 15 kA/cm2 and a gap-voltage of 2.75-2.77 mV. For the compensation of the SIS-junction’s intrinsic capacitance and the optimized power coupling to the tunnel junction, two types of matching circuits have been theoretically modelled and experimentally studied: (1) three-step transformer single junction devices and (2) double-junction devices. This has been done for two material combinations: for an all-superconductive micro strip NbTiN/SiO2/Nb, and for the superconductor/normal-conductor combination NbTiN/SiO2/Al...

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Quasi-optical submillimeter-wave SIS mixers with NbN/A1N/NbN tunnel junctions

Yoshinori Uzawa, Zhen Wang, Akira Kawakami

We report on low-noise heterodyne mixing with NbN/A1N/NbN tunnel junctions in the submillimeter-wave region for the first time. The receiver consists of the quasi-optical NbN SIS mixer with an integrated tuning circuit in which a radial short stub tuner is incorporated to resonate out the junction capacitance for RF matching and a balanced IF circuit for broadband IF matching. The prepared NbN SIS junction has a current density of 20 kA/cm 2 and is about 1 I1111 in diameter, supplying a small coC JRN product (o)CJRN = 3 at 300 GHz). The junctions showed good dc I-V characteristics, excellent submillimeter-wave responses and sensitive heterodyne mixing responses. From 254 to 350 GHz the average receiver noise temperature measured using by the standard Y-factor method was about 250 K (DSB) at 5 K. The lowest receiver noise temperature, 200 K (DSB), was obtained at around 303 GHz. Comparing NbN/A1N/NbN and Nb/A10x/Nb tunnel junction performance with the same tuning circuit showed that the frequency dependence of the receiver noise temperature agreed well in the two receivers. These results suggest that our well-controlled NbN SIS junctions can be used for terahertz mixer elements instead of Nb SIS junctions.

•Mar 1, 1996•2 citations
In this thesis the design and analysis of SIS-mixers (SIS: superconductor-isolator-superconductor) for the use as low-noise and broad-band detectors in the submm-region for astronomical observations is described. The SIS-mixers have been developed for the frequency band 2 (636-802 GHz) of the Heterodyne Instrument for the Far Infrared (HIFI) on ESA’s space-observatory Herschel. The required performance baseline has been defined by the HIFI-consortium in terms of the estimated noise temperature contribution of the mixer to be 110 K at 636 GHz and 150 K at 802 GHz. In the frequency region between 80 GHz and 900 GHz Heterodyne SIS mixers are established as the best devices for low noise mixing with a high spectral resolution (mixing of the signal radiation with local oscillator, LO). For the HIFI band 2 mixers, the technology of Nb/Al-Al2O3/Nb-junctions has been used with junction areas of 0.5-1.0 um2, a target value for the current density jc of 15 kA/cm2 and a gap-voltage of 2.75-2.77 mV. For the compensation of the SIS-junction’s intrinsic capacitance and the optimized power coupling to the tunnel junction, two types of matching circuits have been theoretically modelled and experimentally studied: (1) three-step transformer single junction devices and (2) double-junction devices. This has been done for two material combinations: for an all-superconductive micro strip NbTiN/SiO2/Nb, and for the superconductor/normal-conductor combination NbTiN/SiO2/Al...
We report on low-noise heterodyne mixing with NbN/A1N/NbN tunnel junctions in the submillimeter-wave region for the first time. The receiver consists of the quasi-optical NbN SIS mixer with an integrated tuning circuit in which a radial short stub tuner is incorporated to resonate out the junction capacitance for RF matching and a balanced IF circuit for broadband IF matching. The prepared NbN SIS junction has a current density of 20 kA/cm 2 and is about 1 I1111 in diameter, supplying a small coC JRN product (o)CJRN = 3 at 300 GHz). The junctions showed good dc I-V characteristics, excellent submillimeter-wave responses and sensitive heterodyne mixing responses. From 254 to 350 GHz the average receiver noise temperature measured using by the standard Y-factor method was about 250 K (DSB) at 5 K. The lowest receiver noise temperature, 200 K (DSB), was obtained at around 303 GHz. Comparing NbN/A1N/NbN and Nb/A10x/Nb tunnel junction performance with the same tuning circuit showed that the frequency dependence of the receiver noise temperature agreed well in the two receivers. These results suggest that our well-controlled NbN SIS junctions can be used for terahertz mixer elements instead of Nb SIS junctions.