Tamer Elkhatib et al., "Enhanced Plasma Wave Detection of Terahertz Radiation Using Multiple High Electron-Mobility Transistors Connected in Series," in IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques, vol. 58, (2), 2010, 331
We report on enhanced room-temperature detection of terahertz radiation by several connected field-effect transistors. For this enhanced nonresonant detection, we have designed, fabricated, and tested plasmonic structures consisting of multiple InGaAs/GaAs pseudomorphic high electron-mobility transistors connected in series. Results show a 1.63-THz response that is directly proportional to the number of detecting transistors biased by a direct drain current at the same gate-to-source bias voltages. The responsivity in the saturation regime was found to be 170 V/W with the noise equivalent power in the range of 10 -7 W/Hz 0.5 . The experimental data are in agreement with the detection mechanism based on the rectification of overdamped plasma waves excited by terahertz radiation in the transistor channel.