Development of a 3D Printed Dual-Band mmWave and THz Near-Field Microscope for Skin Cancer Detection

Material contrasts of millimeter and Terahertz waves can reveal information not accessible to other parts of the electromagnetic spectrum, such as the discrimination between healthy and cancerous tissue. The longer wavelengths, as compared to optical frequencies, limit the resolution for many applications, which can be circumvented by using near-field microscopy. Here we present a dual-band scattering near-field microscope operating at 50-75 GHz (WR15) and 220-330 GHz (WR3), as these are two regions known to show a contrast between cancerous and healthy tissue. The microscope is based on a 3D printed metallic measurement head, with a compact and sturdy design, as the design is intended for in-vivo measurement and hence requires a certain degree of mobility. Here we present the development process, resolution and permittivity calibration and measurements of ex-vivo skin cancer samples.