Search

In this paper, a radar demonstrator system with real-time capability operating at ${W}$ -band is presented. It operates at 90–100 GHz and provides 3-D information about the illuminated scene. The system uses frequency modulated continuous wave signals to extract range information whereupon long-range applications are aimed at. It consists of a sparse array of 22 transmitting and 22 receiving antennas and makes use of the multiple input multiple output (MIMO) principle. A back-propagation algorithm provides cross-range information. With the help of simulations and a simulated annealing algorithm, the geometry of the sparse array is optimized to meet application requirements using the available hardware. In this paper, the demonstrator system is described and the imaging theory is shortly reviewed. Measurements are presented to verify simulation results as well as 3-D imaging and long-range capability.

A mid-infrared (MWIR, 3–5 μm) InAs/GaSb type-II superlattice (T2SL) photodiode device with very low dark current is presented. The novel heterojunction device is compared to a conventional pn-homojunction device. Photodetectors with reduced dark current allow an increased operating temperature and thus to lower the cooling requirements for high performance infrared imaging applications. We report on a dark current reduction by a factor of more than 100 at a typical operation voltage of −100 mV at 77 K, which was realized merely by device design. This measured dark current is the lowest reported to our knowledge for T2SL-detectors operating in the 3–5 μm range. At the same time, the photo current signal is unaffected by the heterostructure design over the entire bias voltage range.

The realization of a novel Riemann Pump for radio frequency digital-to-analog converters (RF DACs) in combination with a power amplifier is presented, which improves the signal-to-noise ratio of conventional converter concepts. The presented concept results in an arbitrary waveform generator that at the same time is capable to provide several watts of output power at RF-frequencies to $50~\Omega $ . Furthermore, the gallium nitride (GaN) high-electron-mobility transistor technology provides high-switching frequencies to ensure an oversampling ratio of 5 for a wide baseband bandwidth. The Riemann Pump, which is controlled with a digital bit-stream, is based on the current-steering topology and provides the possibility to synthesize arbitrary waveforms. A 2-b RF DAC was designed with multiple GaN monolithic microwave-integrated circuits and proves the feasibility to generate arbitrary waveforms. Measurement results yield triangular signals with a baseband frequency of 100 MHz for an input-control data rate of 200 Mb/s.

Reactive pulsed DC magnetron co‐sputtering is used to grow piezoelectric aluminum nitride (AlN) and aluminum scandium nitride (AlScN) thin films on Si(001) substrates. By using grazing incidence X‐ray diffraction (GIXRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM), we investigate how the microstructure and the presence of misoriented grains affect the piezoelectric properties of the material. N2 concentration and target‐to‐substrate distance are finely tuned to achieve thin films without misoriented grains, resulting in Al0.87Sc0.13N thin films with low roughness, high degree of c‐axis orientation, homogenous polarity, and piezoelectric coefficient d33 = −12.3 pC/N.

The two-dimensional and virtually massless character of graphene attracts great interest for radio frequency devices, such as surface and bulk acoustic wave resonators. Due to its good electric conductivity, graphene might be an alternative as a virtually massless electrode by improving resonator performance regarding mass-loading effects. We report on an optimization of the commonly used wet transfer technique for large-area graphene, grown via chemical vapor deposition, onto aluminum nitride (AlN), which is mainly used as an active, piezoelectric material for acoustic devices. Today, graphene wet transfer is well-engineered for silicon dioxide (SiO2). Investigations on AlN substrates reveal highly different surface properties compared to SiO2 regarding wettability, which strongly influences the quality of transferred graphene monolayers. Both physical and chemical effects of a plasma treatment of AlN surfaces change wettability and avoid large-scale cracks in the transferred graphene sheet during desiccation. Spatially-resolved Raman spectroscopy reveals a strong strain and doping dependence on AlN plasma pretreatments correlating with the electrical conductivity of graphene. In our work, we achieved transferred crack-free large-area (40 × 40 mm2) graphene monolayers with sheet resistances down to 350 O/sq. These achievements make graphene more powerful as an eco-friendly and cheaper replacement for conventional electrode materials used in radio frequency resonator devices.

In this work we present data analysis algorithms for detection of hazardous substances in hyperspectral observations acquired using active mid-infrared (MIR) backscattering spectroscopy. We present a novel background extraction algorithm based on the adaptive target generation process proposed by Ren and Chang called the adaptive background generation process (ABGP) that generates a robust and physically meaningful set of background spectra for operation of the well-known adaptive matched subspace detection (AMSD) algorithm. It is shown that the resulting AMSD-ABGP detection algorithm competes well with other widely used detection algorithms. The method is demonstrated in measurement data obtained by two fundamentally different active MIR hyperspectral data acquisition devices. A hyperspectral image sensor applicable in static scenes takes a wavelength sequential approach to hyperspectral data acquisition, whereas a rapid wavelength-scanning single-element detector variant of the same principle uses spatial scanning to generate the hyperspectral observation. It is shown that the measurement timescale of the latter is sufficient for the application of the data analysis algorithms even in dynamic scenarios.

Compared to traditional light sources light emitting diodes (LEDs) provide an increased efficiency and long lifetime, making them the primary choice for many applications. However, these lifetimes are highly dependent on operational conditions like junction temperature, drive current and environmental conditions like the exposure to humidity or air pollutants. This work studies the effects of common air pollutants in different concentrations on the lifetime of commercial LEDs with different packages and analyses the observed degradation mechanisms on the AlGaInN LED chips, the metallization and the package components. A special focus is put on the effects of hydrogen sulfide.

The piezoelectric and pyroelectric properties of aluminum nitride (AlN) can be further enhanced by alloying AlN with scandium nitride (ScN). However, while the pyroelectric effect can strongly affect the performance of electroacoustic devices such as surface acoustic wave (SAW) resonators, the pyroelectric properties of aluminum scandium nitride (AlScN) and their thermal dependence are not well known. In this work, the crystallographic, microstructural, and pyroelectric properties of 900 nm thick pyroelectric Al(1-x)ScxN thin films (x=0 to 0.3) are investigated. All films have wurtzite-type crystal structure and are highly c-axis oriented. The pyroelectric coefficient in the temperature range of 20-80 C is determined by measuring the generated current as a function of sinusoidal temperature excitation. The effective pyroelectric coefficient of AlScN increases by approximately 85% in the investigated composition range. Moreover, no temperature dependence of the effective pyroelectric coefficient is observed for all samples. The increase of the effective pyroelectric coefficient is explained qualitatively by considering the contribution of primary and secondary pyroelectric effect as well as the substrate clamping.

The detection of individual photons by superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors is an inherently binary mechanism, revealing either their absence or presence while concealing their spectral information. For multicolor imaging techniques, such as single-photon spectroscopy, fluorescence resonance energy transfer microscopy, and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, wavelength discrimination is essential and mandates spectral separation prior to detection. Here, we adopt an approach borrowed from quantum photonic integration to realize a compact and scalable waveguide-integrated single-photon spectrometer capable of parallel detection on multiple wavelength channels, with temporal resolution below 50 ps and dark count rates below 10 Hz at 80% of the devices' critical current. We demonstrate multidetector devices for telecommunication and visible wavelengths, and showcase their performance by imaging silicon vacancy color centers in diamond nanoclusters. The fully integrated hybrid superconducting nanophotonic circuits enable simultaneous spectroscopy and lifetime mapping for correlative imaging and provide the ingredients for quantum wavelength-division multiplexing on a chip.

For the design of InAs/GaSb superlattice (SL) heterojunction infrared photodetectors with very low dark current we have extended the standard two-component superlattice empirical pseudopotential method (SEPM) and implemented a four-component model including interface layers. For both models, the calculated bandgap values for a set of SL samples are compared to bandgaps determined by photoluminescence measurements. While the bandgap resulting from the two-component model agrees well with experimental data for SL structures with individual layer thicknesses of 7 monolayers and more, we show that for SLs with thinner GaSb layers the four-component SEPM model is accurate, when the As-content in the interface and barrier layers is included in the model.

Here, we show that we control the crystal structure of indium phosphide (InP) nanowires by impurity dopants. We have found that zinc decreases the activation barrier for 2D nucleation growth of zinc-blende InP and therefore promotes the InP nanowires to crystallise in the zinc blende, instead of the commonly found wurtzite crystal structure. More importantly, we demonstrate that we can, by controlling the crystal structure, induce twinning superlattices with long-range order in InP nanowires. We can tune the spacing of the superlattices by the wire diameter and the zinc concentration and present a model based on the cross-sectional shape of the zinc-blende InP nanowires to quantitatively explain the formation of the periodic twinning., 18 pages, 4 figures