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Background/purpose: Terahertz waves are located in the region of the spectrum between milliwaves and infrared. We analyzed the feasibility of terahertz spectroscopy to inspect the compositional variations of the stratum corneum (SC)., Methods: We used a terahertz time-domain spectroscopy system with the metal mesh technique. To investigate whether terahertz can inspect compositional variation of SC, we measured the terahertz frequency spectra of the SC sheet that was treated with chloroform-methanol, lipid mixture, a denaturation agent, and heating with hot air., Results: The chloroform-methanol treatment of the SC shifted the dip position, which represents a convex downward shape of the spectra, to a higher frequency. This dip shift was reversed to an untreated position by the dose-dependent application of a lipid mixture. The heating treatment of the SC shifted the dip position to a higher frequency. The same dip shift was also induced by the application of a denaturation agent to the SC., Conclusion: The technique using terahertz waves with a metal mesh is effective because of its simplicity and its high degree of accuracy in detecting the amount of lipid and the protein conformation state., (© 2012 John Wiley & Sons A/S.)

We demonstrate a highly sensitive imaging method combined a terahertz time-domain spectroscopy and an interference effect for label-free protein detection on a polyvinylidene difluoride membrane. The method is based on terahertz time-domain spectroscopy and uses an interference effect. Biotin is linked to the membrane using poly ethylene glycol or poly ethylene glycol methyl ether to prevent it from being washed off. Binding of the biotin with streptavidin is then observed by measuring the terahertz signal change due to the variation of the membrane refractive index. We demonstrate the detection of the binding streptavidin protein in gradually decreasing concentrations, down to 27 ng mm-2, using the image recorded at 1.5 THz.

In this study, we developed a multi-wavelength terahertz-wave parametric generator that operates with only one injection seeding laser. Tunable lasers used as an injection seeder must be single-frequency oscillators, and conventional multi-wavelength terahertz-wave parametric generator requires basically the same number of lasers as the number of wavelengths. In order to solve this problem, we developed a new external cavity semiconductor laser that incorporates a DMD in its wavelength-selective mechanism. In this process, stable multi-wavelength oscillation from a single laser was made possible by efficiently causing four-wave mixing. This seed laser can be applied to practical real-time terahertz spectroscopy by arbitrarily switching the desired wavelength to be generated and the interval between multiple wavelengths. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We recently reported that the terahertz (THz)-wave characteristics of pottery bodies varied significantly with firing temperature. This suggested the feasibility of conducting nondestructive inspection of the sinterability and manufacturing-process management of ceramics by THz-wave analysis. However, it is not clear why the THz-wave characteristics of ceramics change with firing temperature. In this study, we evaluated the THz-wave transmission properties of low-temperature-sintered porcelain bodies fired at various temperatures using THz time-domain spectroscopy and investigated the relationship between the crystal phase and microstructure. We found that the THz-wave transmittance increased with the dehydration of kaolinite and decreased with the formation of mullite and glass phases in the body. Also, as the firing temperature increased, the THz-wave transmittance of these bodies was affected by scattering due to the formation of pores. Additionally, the refractive index in the THz range showed a good correlation with the bulk density. We established that the firing-temperature dependence of the refractive index in the THz range was related to the crystal phase and microstructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There was no appropriate antireflection coating material for organic nonlinear optical (NLO) crystal used for terahertz wave generation; therefore, it was difficult to reduce Fresnel's reflection loss of laser power used to excite the emitter crystal until we found that an amorphous polymer "Cytop" was applicable. Here, we demonstrate enhanced terahertz (THz) wave generation from an organic NLO crystal using a coating made from Cytop. With the Cytop coating, surface reflection losses of the excitation light were minimized, resulting in a significant improvement in THz wave generation over a wide frequency range. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sinterability of ceramic tiles was evaluated using terahertz (THz) time‐domain spectroscopy. The transmittance, complex refractive index, and reflectance of the ceramic tiles fired at various temperatures were measured in frequency range of 0.3‐1.2 THz. The relation between these THz properties and their sinterability were examined. The firing‐temperature dependences of the refractive index and reflectance at 0.5 THz showed a similar behavior as that shown by the bulk density. These results show that the THz spectroscopy can be applied to nondestructive inspection of the sinterability of ceramic tiles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have investigated the characteristics of a terahertz (THz) beam steering method based on a combination of difference-frequency generation (DFG) with the principle of the phased array antenna. In the DFG of THz radiation from a nonlinear optical crystal pumped by optical beams, the phase front of the THz radiation is indirectly tilted by adjusting the relative incidence angle between the pump beams to the crystal. A magnification of the steering angle with a factor of 193 is demonstrated as the most important effect provided by the method. The effect allows the use of a high-speed optical deflector for adjusting the incidence angle, accelerating the steering more than a hundred times compared with mechanical methods. The phase mismatching between the THz radiation and the pump beams as well as the refraction at the crystal surface limit the steering angle of the THz radiation to 56°, full width at half maximum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of experiments in the field of THz-wave spectroscopy is described. The measurement of absorption spectra of solid samples, powders, and liquids is demonstrated using various optical setups. One of the sources we used is a widely tunable coherent THz-wave generator relying on an optical parametric process: nanosecond O-switched Nd : YAG laser light scattering from the polariton mode of a MgO-doped LiNbO3 crystal. For the measurement of the absorption of THz waves in liquids, a train of waves is allowed to oscillate inside a silicon prism. A liquid placed on a total internal reflection surface lowers the quality factor of the resonator, which allows determining the complex refraction index of the sample by frequency scanning. We have also developed a technique for THz chemical imaging, by introducing the component spatial pattern analysis. The spatial distribution of the chemicals, such as illicit drugs concealed in an envelope, is obtained from terahertz multispectral transillumination images and absorption spectra. To compensate for the low imaging speed, a prescreening step is proposed, by first detecting the presence of powders in the envelopes, which is achieved by measuring in real time the amount of scattering produced by the envelopes. Details and examples are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A technique is presented for the measurement of the absorption properties of liquids in the terahertz wave range, based on the interaction between the liquid and the evanescent wave covering the surface of a cylindrical waveguide made of high-resistivity silicon. The terahertz wave propagates inside the waveguide as the fundamental EH11 mode. The presence of a medium around the silicon rod has a measurable effect on the overall end-to-end transmission of the waveguide. As demonstration, we report the measurements of a D-glucose aqueous solution with a concentration ranging from 0% to 45%, using a backward-wave oscillator as the terahertz wave source. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Metallic meshes work as band-pass filters in the terahertz (THz) region, with their transmission spectra acutely affected by the refractive index of the material inside and above the metallic-mesh openings. We used a metallic mesh for high-sensitivity observations by focusing on the “dip,” that is, a sudden change in transmittance that only appeared when the THz wave was obliquely incident onto the metallic mesh. Here we consider the interference between apertures of the metallic mesh in the diagonal direction and explain the dip using finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) electromagnetic simulations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]