Title :
Submillimeter receivers for radio astronomy
Author :
Blundell, Raymond ; Tong, Cheuk-yu Edward
Author_Institution :
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophys., Cambridge, MA, USA
fDate :
11/1/1992 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
The state of development of receivers for submillimeter-wave radio astronomy is reviewed. Bolometers for continuum observation, hot-electron mixer receivers for narrowband spectral line observation, and heterodyne receivers, both Schottky diode and superconducting tunnel junction, are presented. At the lower frequency end of the submillimeter band, standard waveguide techniques, scaled from millimeter wavelengths, prevail. At wavelengths shorter than about 0.5 mm, quasioptical designs are preferred. In the case of Schottky diode receivers, corner cube designs are used almost exclusively, whereas integrated mixer designs are the focal point of research for superconductor-insulator-superconductor (SIS) receivers at these wavelengths. Although such designs are extensively reviewed, it is nevertheless the Schottky diode mixer remains the element of choice at the shortest submillimeter wavelengths
Keywords :
Schottky-barrier diodes; bolometers; electron device noise; mixers (circuits); radio receivers; radiotelescopes; solid-state microwave devices; submillimetre astronomy; submillimetre wave devices; superconducting junction devices; SIS receivers; Schottky diode mixer; Schottky diode receivers; THF; continuum observation; corner cube designs; heterodyne receivers; hot-electron mixer receivers; integrated mixer designs; narrowband spectral line observation; radioastronomy; standard waveguide techniques; submillimeter receivers; submm; superconductor-insulator-superconductor receivers; Bolometers; Frequency; Josephson junctions; Millimeter wave technology; Narrowband; Radio astronomy; Receivers; Schottky diodes; Submillimeter wave technology; Superconducting devices;
Journal_Title :
Proceedings of the IEEE