Mun Seok Choe

A comprehensive analysis of a TE11 to HE11 mode converter for an oversized F-band corrugated waveguide

We have investigated the mode transition behavior from approximately half- to quarter-wavelength in typical F-band (90–140 GHz) TE11 to HE11 converters of varying corrugation depths. Simulations in which the number of slots in the corrugation is varied indicate that the optimal number of slots should be greater than two, which is in excellent agreement with the experimental results. The mode content was also analyzed with and without a quarter-wavelength depth-corrugated tapered section. The electric field pattern at the exit of a quarter-wavelength tapered transition connected to a half-wavelength to quarter-wavelength TE11 to HE11 mode converter is compared with that without a converter. Electric field patterns both with and without a half- to quarter-wavelength TE11 to HE11 mode converter show a highly Gaussian field pattern with less than 35 dB of cross-polarization. Simulated field patterns are in good agreement with the experimentally measured field patterns, with the measured and simulated electric field distributions matching approximately 96.5 and 97.5%, respectively, to a pure Gaussian distribution.

Orbital Angular Momentum (OAM) of Rotating Modes Driven by Electrons in Electron Cyclotron Masers

The well-defined orbital angular momentum (OAM) of rotating cavity modes operating near the cutoff frequency excited by gyrating electrons in a high-power electron cyclotron maser (ECM)—a gyrotron—has been derived by photonic and electromagnetic wave approaches. A mode generator was built with a high-precision 3D printing technique to mimic the rotating gyrotron modes for precise low-power measurements and shows clear natural production of higher-order OAM modes. Cold-test measurements of higher-order OAM mode generation promise the realization towards wireless long-range communications using high-power ECMs.

Remote Detection of Radioactive Material using High-Power Pulsed Electromagnetic Radiation

Remote detection of radioactive materials is impossible when the measurement location is far from the radioactive source such that the leakage of high-energy photons or electrons from the source cannot be measured. Current technologies are less effective in this respect because they only allow the detection at distances to which the high-energy photons or electrons can reach the detector. Here we demonstrate an experimental method for remote detection of radioactive materials by inducing plasma breakdown with the high-power pulsed electromagnetic waves. Measurements of the plasma formation time and its dispersion lead to enhanced detection sensitivity compared to the theoretically predicted one based only on the plasma on and off phenomena. We show that lower power of the incident electromagnetic wave is sufficient for plasma breakdown in atmospheric-pressure air and the elimination of the statistical distribution is possible in the presence of radioactive material.

Near-Field Pattern of Large Aperture Higher Order Mode Generator Using Backpropagated Fields in Free Space

This paper reports the estimation of the electric field from a large aperture cavity that generates a higher order mode by backpropagation of fields measured in free space. A higher order mode of a TE6,2 mode at 94 GHz is designed and fabricated using a quasi-optical manner for the analysis. The backpropagating field at the aperture is compared with the measured field. The field estimated at the aperture is used to analyze the mode information, such as the amount of mode mixture of two different rotating fields and the phase difference between two modes. This paper provides a quantitative way to analyze the rotating cylindrical modes generated from an oversized cavity.

Accurate identification of whispering gallery mode patterns of gyrotron with stabilized electro-optic imaging system

The precise field pattern measurement and analysis of a typical whispering gallery mode excited in a gyrotron are important to understand the interaction physics of the gyrotron. We precisely analyzed the characteristic of a whispering gallery mode, rotating TE6,2 mode, by a photonic-assisted W-band (75–110 GHz) electro-optic imaging measurement system. The whispering gallery mode in the W-band region diverges fast in free space as it propagates from the radiation port. Therefore, scanning the field patterns of a device-under-test should be performed as close as possible to identify the devices characteristics. We successfully accomplished visualizing highly accurate field patterns of a rotating and mixed whispering gallery mode based on the measured electric field magnitude and phase by using dual optical fiber-scale electro-optic (EO) probes. We observed the distorted fields when the typical open-ended waveguide and a general EO probe were used in the extremely near-field zone, whereas a very precise f...

Trantenna: Monolithic transistor-antenna device for real-time THz imaging system

We report a circular-shape monolithic transistor-antenna (trantenna) for high-performance plasmonic terahertz (THz) detector. By designing an asymmetric transistor on a ring-type metal-gate structure, more enhanced (45 times) channel charge asymmetry has been obtained in comparison with a bar-type asymmetric transistor of our previous work. In addition, by exploiting ring-type transistor itself as a monolithic circular patch antenna, which is designed for a 0.12-THz resonance frequency, we demonstrated the highly-enhanced responsivity (RV) > 1 kV/W (× 5) and reduced noise-equivalent power (NEP) < 10 pW/Hz0.5 (× 1/10).

Highly-sensitive plasmonic nano-ring transistor for monolithic terahertz active antenna

We report a highly-sensitive plasmonic nano-ring transistor for monolithic terahertz (THz) active antenna. By designing an ultimate asymmetric transistor on a metal-gate structure, more enhanced (180 times) channel charge asymmetry has been obtained in comparison with a bar-type asymmetric transistor of our previous work. In addition, by exploiting ring-type transistor itself as a monolithic circular active antenna, which is designed for a 0.12-THz resonance frequency, we experimentally demonstrated the highly-enhanced responsivity (RV) > 1 kV/W (x 5) and reduced noise-equivalent power (NEP) < 10 pW/Hz0.5 (x 1/10).

Generation and Validation of Topological Charges of High-Power Gyrotron Orbital Angular Momentum Beams From Phase Retrieval Algorithm

We present a phase coefficient optimization technique for determining the vortex charge of a high-power orbital angular momentum beam. This high-power vortex beam is generated by transmitting a Gaussian-like beam emitted by a gyrotron with an output power of 25 kW through a spiral phase plate (SPP), which introduces a vorticity at the center of the beam characterized by the geometrical parameters of the SPP. One rigorous, intensity-measurement-based, phase retrieval technique, known as the Gerchberg–Saxton algorithm, does not converge to a correct solution because of the presence of a phase singularity in the high-power vortex beam. Here, we introduce a new phase retrieval algorithm that chooses an appropriate initial phase estimate. This technique yields successful vortex charge determination for both low- and high-power vortex beams. The retrieved intensity profiles show 99.51% and 99.27% intensity regeneration at measurement planes with optimized initial phase estimates for the low- and high-power beams, respectively.

Measuring the carrier lifetime by using a quasi-optical millimeter- and THz-wave system

The existing method for contactless measurement of the photoconductivity decay time is limited in terms of sample selection according to the injection level or doping density. To solve this problem and improve the measurement sensitivity, we developed a quasi-optical photoconductivity decay (QO-PCD) technique based on millimeter- and terahertz-wave technology. A semi-insulating silicon (Si) wafer was used in a proof-of-concept experiment with the proposed QO-PCD system to find the initial excess carrier density and carrier lifetime based on the Drude–Zener model with a single decay function. The initial excess carrier density and carrier lifetime were measured to be 1.5 × 1015 cm−3 and 30.6 μs, respectively, in semi-insulating Si wafer (460 μm thickness). A 2D areal measurement of the decay time of the Si wafer was experimentally obtained. The proposed QO-PCD technique can provide more reliable and sensitive carrier lifetime measurement data for semiconductor wafers, which may impact the fields of photovo...

A Method for Pulse Shortening of High-Power Millimeter Waves Using Plasma Breakdown

We report an efficient pulse shortening technique of a high-power millimeter source using plasma breakdown. A W-band gyrotron with a frequency of 95 GHz and an output power of 30 kW was used for the demonstration. The pulse shortening technique was based on plasma breakdown phenomena that do not need any change in the high-power source and its modulator. The pulse shortening of a factor of 20 was demonstrated. This method may provide a simple and compact system for controlling the RF pulse length without modifying the main millimeter-wave system.