Improved terahertz emission characteristics from photoconductive antennas integrated with micron-size 1D and 2D metal line arrays

Terahertz (THz) photoconductive antennas (PCA’s) from SI-GaAs substrates having one-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) micron-size metal line arrays (MLA's) were fabricated. Photolithography and electron beam deposition of Ni/Au were used to fabricate spiral PCA’s and 1D/2D MLA's on the transmission side of the PCA. Compared to a reference bare PCA, the THz time-domain signal enhanced ~6x for 1DMLA and ~11x for 2DMLA, with their corresponding bandwidths broadened. The origin of the enhancement is being investigated but is currently attributed to spoof surface plasmon phenomena. Integrating MLA’s with PCA’s demonstrates a more cost-effective alternative to nanostructure fabrication within the PCA gap.